Local takeaways take 'Small Steps to Healthier Choices'

Nineteen takeaways throughout the Magherafelt District are participating in the 'Small Steps to Healthier Choices' initiative, which is running across nine Council areas. In total, 150 fast food outlets across Northern Ireland are taking part in this groundbreaking project.

Catriona Davis, Senior Environmental Health Officer, comments;

"As the name suggests, the changes made will be small and the public may not even be aware that any change has occurred. Longer term however, these small steps have the potential to positively impact on health."

A wide range of 'small steps' are being introduced, from including healthier menu options, such as salad bowls, to using alternative ingredients and products which have a lower fat and higher fibre content. Healthier preparation and cooking methods may be used, such as chunkier chips. Other 'small steps' may be to have water on offer as an alternative to fizzy drinks or to provide fruit and yoghurts for kid's meal deals.

The 19 participating takeaways in the Magherafelt District Council area are:

• Bowies, Maghera
• Clady Chippy, Clady
• Dilly's Diner, Gulladuff
• Frankies, Draperstown
• Hungry Jacks, Maghera
• Jenny's Country Kitchen, Glenshane Road, Maghera
• Lydia's Traditional Fish and Chips, Tobermore
• Mack's Snacks, Moneyneany
• Mainway, Swatragh
• Marvin's, Magherafelt
• Mac's Fish and Burger Bar, Magherafelt
• Motobites, Magherafelt
• Sperrin Catering, Grillagh Picnic Area, Maghera
• Superchip, Desertmartin
• Taste the Difference, Draperstown
• The Jolly Fryer, Draperstown
• The Savoy, Magherafelt
• The Village Takeaway, Bellaghy
• Wilma's Plaice, Castledawson

The Council would love to hear your views on this exciting new initiative and Customer Comment Cards are available in each participating outlet. So once you've had a chance to try any of the healthier options at your local participating takeaway, simply complete the comment forms and tell us what you think. Alternatively for further information you can contact the Environmental Health Department on Tel: 02879397979.

Chairman of Magherafelt District Council Cllr. Sean McPeake at the launch of the "Small Steps to Healthier Choices" initiative. He is joined with representatives from participating takeaways and Council Environmental Health Staff.

Chairman of Magherafelt District Council Cllr. Sean McPeake tucks into some healthy food at the launch of the "Small Steps to Healthier Choices" initiative. He is joined with Karen Waites (Motobites), Tony Armstrong (Marvin) and Karen Ledgewood (Hungry Jacks).

Hot Food Counters Offer "Lighter Bites"

Magherafelt District Council has launched an exciting new initiative with retail premises in the Council area that serve hot food at lunch time.

The "Lighter Bites" programme which was launched on 01 February aims to offer those dining out at lunch time a healthier alternative to the convenience style hot food. The project is particularly aimed at those retail premises in close proximity to secondary level schools where students are permitted to leave the premises to source their lunch time meal. This is the first time in Northern Ireland that Councils, Schools and local businesses have come together to target the diet of young people eating outside of school.

All students permitted out of school in the Magherafelt District have been surveyed and follow up sampling of the foods consumed undertaken. Results have shown that some typical takeaway foods consumed by pupils, often on a daily basis can contain up to 165% of the guideline daily amount of saturated fat and almost 100% of the salt requirement in one meal. Continued consumption of this type of food will have long term health effects such as obesity, coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes.

Catriona Davis, Senior Environmental Health Officer with Magherafelt District Council comments.

"We have launched this initiative in February to coincide with National Heart Month. We are working in partnership with local businesses to provide a "lighter bite" for those students and others through the provision of daily student specials. Each premises has introduced three student specials every lunchtime and also made two other changes to either their raw materials such as offering chunkier chips, offering smaller portions or by changing their cooking methods."

10 premises throughout the district have signed up to the project which will run initially for an eight week period for February and March. Each premises wil have the "lighter bites" logo on display. These are:

Centra, Maghera

Centra, Draperstown

Centra, Magherafelt

Kelly's Eurospar, Maghera

P&N Quality Meats, Maghera

Spar Highfield, Magherafelt

Snackbox, Magherafelt

Toners Nisa, Draperstown

Toners Nisa, Magherafelt

Toners Nisa, Maghera

This follows on from the successful "Smaller Steps to Healthier Choices" programme running in the fish and chip shops throughout the district which was launched in September last year. 15 local premises continue to operate the scheme with a total of 150 outlets participating throughout Northern Ireland.

Catriona comments:

"The co-operation we have received so far from businesses has been very encouraging, with the important factor being that the customer has the choice and can decide for themselves if they want the healthier alternative. In the long term we would like to see healthier alternatives available in all food outlets so that the saturated fat and salt content of convenience foods is reduced".

An up to date list of premises will be available throughout the project on the Council's website: www.magherafelt.gov.uk

Customer comment cards are available at each participating outlet and the Council would love to hear your views on this initiative. Alternatively for further information contact the Environmental Health Department on Tel: 02879397979.

For further information please contact:

Catriona Davis

Senior Environmental Health Officer

Tel 028 79397979 or c.davis@magherafelt.gov.uk

Centra, Magherafelt

Spar Highfield, Magherafelt

Eurospar, Maghera

Centra, Maghera

Toners, Maghera

Centra, Draperstown

Toners, Draperstown

Takeaways step up to the chippy challenge

This week Mayors, Chairpersons and Officers from nine different Council areas stepped out to launch an exciting new initiative, 'Small Steps to Healthier Choices'. 150 fast food outlets across nine Council areas are taking part in the groundbreaking project, 19 of which are located in the Magherafelt District Council area, which aims to offer a range of healthier options in local takeaways.

The nine participating Council areas are Ballymena, Ballymoney, Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Cookstown, Larne, Magherafelt, Moyle and Newtownabbey. A wide range of 'small steps' are being introduced from healthier menu options, such as salad bowls, to using alternative ingredients and products which have a lower fat and higher fibre content. Healthier preparation and cooking methods may be used, such as chunkier chips. Other 'small steps' may be to have water on offer as an alternative to fizzy drinks or to provide fruit and yoghurts for kid's meal deals.

The implementation of Small Steps to Healthier Choices is managed by the 'Northern Group Systems (NGS) Nutrition Working Group' which has representation from each of the councils from across the Northern area. The group is tasked to work with local food businesses to improve nutritional standards.

Dr Janice McConnell, Chair of the Northern Group Systems (NGS) Nutrition Working Group commented;

'There has been a very encouraging response by local businesses to the Small Steps to Healthier Choices initiative. The changes made by businesses are a good starting point, supporting government campaigns on salt and saturated fat. Council Officers will continue to support businesses to ensure long term sustainability of the project.'

Speaking at the event Hilary Johnston, Investing for Health Manager with the Public Health Agency (Northern Area) added;

"The local councils within the Northern area work collaboratively to take forward a range of health improvement work that supports the wider Investing for Health agenda of improving health and well being, and tackling local health inequalities. The Small Steps to Healthier Choices initiative is an excellent example of local government having health improvement as a core priority."

For a list of takeaways participating in the project in your area visit our website www.magherafelt.gov.uk

For further information please contact:

Catriona Davis

Senior EHO

Magherafelt District Council

Tel: 02879397979 e-mail: c.davis@magherafelt.gov.uk

• All Councils involved in the project are part of the Northern Investing for Health Partnership. The role of the partnership is to take forward at a local level, the implementation of the investing for Health Strategy, issued by Government in 2002. The Health Improvement Plan is the primary vehicle for taking this forward locally, containing a range of actions to improve health and tackle health inequalities, many of which are progressed in conjunction with local Council partners.
• The following table is a list of changes that have been made by participating takeaways. Each takeaway has implemented one change from section A and a minimum of 4 changes from Section B: