Brits are biggest chocoholics

Britons are increasing their lead as Europe's top chocolate and sweets eaters. As record numbers of us are being classed as obese, new figures reveal that nowhere in Europe does any country even challenge Britain's pre-eminence in chocolate consumption.

Datamonitor, a market analyst which tracks trends in the food and drink industry, says the average Briton eats 11.2kg of chocolate a year, almost three kilograms more than the second ranked nation, Belgium - a country that cultivates its image as the home of fine, luxurious chocolate.

Yet the average Belgian eats just 8.4kg a year. Britain, it appears, opts for quantity rather than quality where chocolate is concerned.

Figures for France and Germany are significantly lower, at 6.7kg for France and 4.9kg for Germany. And the two largest Latin countries, Spain and Italy, eat even less chocolate - just 1.6kg per person in Spain and
1.7kg per person in Italy.

However, the French - Europe's third largest consumers of chocolate - recorded the biggest total increase in consumption between 1996 and
2001. At 395 million kg, last year, they ate almost 59 million kg more than in 1996. Britons weren't far behind, though, eating almost 661 million kg of chocolate last year - 55 million kg more than in 1996.

We also eat more sugary sweets than any other European country, a fact Datamonitor attributes on the rise of pick-and-mix stalls in cinemas and bowling alleys.

The new figures support food specialists' fears that Britain is becoming a nation of sweet and fast-food junkies. One in 10 children is now classed as overweight and 2.6 per cent are obese. One in five gets more than 20 per cent of their calories from sugar: twice the recommended amount. Dr Wendy Doyle of the British Dietetic Association, said: "We have a national craving for sweet things. People also like the texture of chocolate in the mouth. They feel it's something luxurious and pamper themselves with it. In moderation it can be had as part of a healthy diet but you really have to be a little careful. It's certainly contributing to obesity."

Alan Porter, chairman of the Chocolate Society, said that British appreciation of quality chocolate had increased hugely.

"They have got the message and they know what is bad for them.

"Nowadays you can buy highquality chocolate bars in every high street supermarket. These bars have a high cocoa content and actually help reduce cholesterol."

There was some good news from the survey: Britons are drinking more bottled water and sports drinks than ever.

While fizzy drinks still make up almost two-thirds of the UK soft drinks market, bottled water accounts for seven per cent, with the market growing by almost five per cent from 1996 to 2001.

Sales of sports drinks were up 42 per cent over the five years - but there is no evidence it is because guilt-ridden chocoholics are rushing to the gym after work.