Opinion

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Fast food

Tuesday 12 August 2008

Calls by the government's nutritional advice body Voedingcentrum for a ban on snack bars near schools and in areas with lots of fast food joints have not gone down particularly well with the powers that be who could actually impose such a ban.

Health minister Ab Klink, who launched his own weak efforts to improve the nation's nutritional health just before the summer, says the matter is nothing to do with the government.

And Liberal MPs are also muttering about excessive government interference.

Liberal MP Halbe Zijlstra argues that it is in poorer areas – which already have a fast food outlet on every corner – that the government should be stimulating more people to set up businesses.

No matter if that means yet another Turkish snack bar. Not exactly good business sense, but there you go.

At the beginning of July Klink said the government is going to join forces with the food industry and retailers to encourage people to become healthier by eating more fruit, vegetables and fish. Not that he came up with any concrete measures, mind you.

But then again, efforts to discourage over-consumption of French fries and other deep-fried favourites are not going to go down well with the food firms, are they?