The voluntary deal, which has been signed by over 170 companies and organisations, aims to promote calorie labelling on menus, provide alcohol unit information on drinks, and reduce salt and remove trans fats from food items.
Speaking at the launch of a new initiative that will see £2bn allocated to local authorities toward public health initiatives, health minister Andrew Lansley said that the deal had “led to real changes for everyone and we can now see these in our everyday life – on our high street, in our supermarkets and at work too”.
He said: “Now people on the high street can be reassured that artificial trans fats are not lurking in their food from many outlets such as Greggs, Costa or McDonald’s. In supermarkets, people will know a lot of the food going into their basket will have less salt in.
"And customers will know that when they eat out at popular high street restaurants this year over a third of meals and takeaways will have their calories labelled, helping people to opt for the healthier options.
“People might not realise that these changes are down to the Responsibility Deal but we can now see that it is helping people to live healthier lives.”
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