Tesco turns down 'traffic lights'

Tesco has thrown plans for a national "traffic light" food labelling scheme into chaos.

The group has rejected the Government's preferred option of printing red, amber and green "lights" on labels to indicate levels of salt, fat and sugar. It says its own research indicated consumers were confused by an amber " caution" indicator.

Instead the chain will print on its own-label products the level of salt, sugar, saturated fat and calories in grams and how this compares with the recommended daily intake.

Tesco's decision will make it harder for the Government's Food Standards Agency to impose a national "signposting" standard on the food industry. It is currently consulting on a range of options, including two variations of the traffic light system and a third option, much closer to Tesco's choice.

A traffic light approach, where green means eat plenty, amber means eat in moderation and red eat sparingly, was one of the proposals in the Government's Public Health White Paper last year.