The Prime Minister has defended the government鈥檚 new food strategy after it was criticised by its own adviser for not including a tax on sugar and salt.
Speaking at a vegetable farm in Cornwall for the launch of a major review of the 海角视频鈥檚 food system, Boris Johnson said the food and drink industry was 鈥渧oluntarily reducing the amount of sugar, the amount of salt very substantially鈥.
A report due to be published on Monday (June 13) is expected to recommend more investment in automated farming methods to improve productivity.
It will also set out a vision for 50% of public sector food spend to go on food produced locally or certified to higher standards, and plans for a new professional body for the farming and growing industry, to boost training and equip businesses with skills needed to work sustainably and profitably.
Mr Johnson was responding to reporters鈥 questions during a visit to Southern England Farms in Hayle in south west Cornwall, after food tsar Henry Dimbleby said the government had only taken on half of his proposals.
The co-founder of the Leon restaurant chain said while policy was moving in the 鈥渞ight direction鈥, he criticised the strategy for not taking on recommendations he had made to improve the nation's health,
Among these was a cut in meat consumption and production, as well as an effective tax on the use of salt and sugar in processed foods.
Food minister Victoria Prentis insisted earlier on Monday that such a levy would be a 鈥渂lunt instrument鈥 to tackle a 鈥渃omplex鈥 problem.
The MP said 鈥渧oluntary initiatives鈥 could work, despite stark warnings including from Mr Dimbleby that Government intervention is needed to help reduce child obesity.
READ MORE: You can find more of our stories from Cornwall, Devon and the South West here
Weighing in on the obesity debate during his farm visit, the Prime Minister said: 鈥淲hat we don鈥檛 want to do right now is start whacking new taxes on them that will just push up the cost of food.鈥
He added: 鈥淭he best way to lose weight, believe me, is to eat less.鈥
Mr Johson said the new plans would allow more food to be grown and consumed in the 海角视频, boost Britain鈥檚 farming industry and food security from future economic shocks.
Environment Secretary George Eustice has said the government did not want people to eat less meat, and dismissed Mr Dimbleby鈥檚 accusation there was an 鈥渋deological arm wrestle鈥 between ministers who want more state intervention to encourage healthy eating and those who oppose it.
Mr Eustice told BBC Radio 4: 鈥淲e are looking at this a different way which is, rather than lecturing the public on their diet and telling them they shouldn鈥檛 eat meat, what we should actually be doing is reducing methane emissions from livestock production, and there are some really interesting technologies coming into this space that significantly reduce methane emissions.鈥
Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers鈥 Union, said a comprehensive food strategy was 鈥渞eally needed鈥.
But she told Times Radio there was a labour 鈥渃risis鈥 in the growing industry, meaning food was being ploughed back into land on farms across the country.
She said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a growing problem. I know glasshouses where tomatoes remain unpicked, we know there was a big crop of lettuces that was ploughed back in last week.
鈥淕rowers are extremely reluctant to put their name to this because it will massively compromise their business with their contractual relationship going forwards. So there is a real nervousness about speaking out on food waste on farms but it is happening at scale.鈥
She added: 鈥淲e have food banks at full stretch, and yet we are wasting fantastic quality nutritious products on farms.鈥
During his visit to the Cornish farm Mr Johnson spoke to workers, drove a tractor, sorted broccoli in a packaging plant and was shown a modern vegetable planting machine.
The PA news agency reported that after asking where the workers came from, the Prime Minister was told many were from Lithuania and Ukraine, with more due to arrive from the war-torn country.
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