1. Changing Market Mechanisms
Barriers faced by the small business sector
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Jemma Grime
HBA Project Manager
Wigan Council

2. Introduction
The Healthy Business Award is delivered by Wigan Council, funded by NHS
Ashton, Leigh and Wigan and works in partnership with the School of Food
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Science and Nutrition at the University of Leeds.
The HBA has a dedicated delivery team skilled in public health, food science,
nutrition,
nutrition business management, development & engagement and media &
management
communications.
The HBA has several different interventions which are designed by business
sector.
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The Healthy Business team works with cafes, restaurants, fish and chip shops,
workplace canteens, nurseries, care homes, hospitals, stadia, vending and
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manufacturers.

3. Small Independent Food Sector
Understanding a business’s trading environment is key to improving the
nutritional content of the food small businesses serve.
Factors influencing the delivery of an effective intervention:
• Motivation – are they interested in healthy eating?
• Education – can they cook?
• Financial – natural ingredients often more expensive, less shelf life
expensive
• Time – Short-staffed due to poor economic climate
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Perception – Wh i h l h f d? Will customers want it?
i What is healthy food? i?
• Management issues – Change in ownership, compliance with Food
Safety and Trading Standards legislation.
legislation

4. Tackling the Businesses
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Maintenance of the business’s trading environment, key considerations:
Saturating the Healthier Choice market could prove too much competition for a
fixed market, contributing to further economic decline.
The ‘Hard to Reach’ businesses do not like trying new ingredients and cooking
practices – consultative phased approach
approach.
Many consumers do not wish to eat healthily - by carrying out stealth changes
this issue is negated.
Two key approaches:
• Increasing labelling of healthier options – making it easier for people to eat
healthily when they want toto.
• Nutritionally improving businesses by reformulation, improved cooking
practices, procurement and portion size.

5. Case Study
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Fish and Chip Shops
• Business and consumer perception
• Research - raw ingredients, p p
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ingredient preparation, cooking and serving practices.
• Health vs Taste – links between quality and health.
• Engaging the businesses

6. Barriers faced on delivery of
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intervention
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Knowledge and experience of f
l d d i f fryer
• Frying Practice
• Ingredients e g potato variety & quality (seasonal variations) oil type
e.g. variations), type.
• Frequency of oil change – indicators of oil degradation
• Speed of Service and ‘Hot Hold’ time
Hot Hold
• Equipment and facilities available.

7. Barriers faced on delivery of
intervention
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• Equipment and facilities available .
• Frying ranges are often 20 years old – simple tasks such as emptying and
cleaning of range pans becomes difficult.
• Temperature management issues
issues.
• Lack of awareness to oil : product.
• Potato storage and prep area too cold
cold.
• Added sodium through batter mixes, gravy/curry mixes, bicarb for peas.
• Additives including colourings and flavour enhancers
enhancers.
• Meal deals incentivising large portions.
• Issues surrounding food safety
safety.

8. Intervention Results
• Fried products contain approx 27% less fat and saturated fat post intervention.
• The fat that is absorbed in the product contains less undesirable compounds
such as trans fats and acrylamide.
• Cost of additional oil changes largely off-set by introducing more efficient and
economical practices
practices.
• Shops report that they are busier due to increased product quality and
marketing of the HBA Fish and Chip shop work.
• Type of fat used e.g. Palm Oil is generally used due to healthier oils being less
stable, taste preference, cost of the fat and the issue with equipment.
• Portion sizes of chips are often reduced due to offering meal deals which
include peas at the expense of a few chips. Packaging methods which reduce the
portion size are also trialled with the business.
• Less sodium introduced into the product through pre-mixes.
• Scraps no longer served.

9. Outcomes
1. The HBA has improved the health of the borough’s residents through
reducing fat, saturated fat, salt and added sugar and increasing the
consumption of fruit, vegetables and fibre. The fish and chip
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intervention is just one of several strands of the HBA programme.
An estimated 70,000 premature deaths in the UK could be avoided each year if
diets matched nutritional guidelines in terms of consumption of vegetables and
reduced consumption of salt, saturated fat and added sugar.
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This is more than 10% of current annual mortality. The health benefits of
meeting the national nutritional guidelines have been estimated to be as high
as £20 billion each year
year. Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALY) Department of
Health estimate.

10. Outcomes
2. Food consumed from HBA premises contributes less to
increasing b d f t
i i body fatness th non-HBA premises.
than HBA i
Increasing body fatness is associated with serious medical complications for
example diabetes hypertension CAD stroke and cancer
diabetes, hypertension, CAD, cancer.
Kopelman, P/ 2007. Helath Risks Associated with Overweight and
Obesity. Short Science Review. Foresight Tackling Obesities; Future
Choices. Obesity Reviews, 8 (s1); 13-17.
Cost to the NHS: If the ratio of total costs of overweight and obesity to
health service cost of obesity remains similar to 2001 (i.e. 7 to 1), by
2050, an overall total cost of overweight and obesity per annum of
£49.9
£49 9 billion at today’s prices can be anticipated
today s anticipated.
McPherson, K., Marsh, T. and Brown, M. 2007.
Modelling future Trends in Obesity and the Impact on
Health; Foresight Tackling Obesities; Future Choices.

11. Outcomes
3. The HBA is working towards reducing inequality in the
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borough with approximately 45% of HBA premises serving
SOAs.
4. The HBA has raised personal awareness around healthier
lifestyles as shown by project evaluation and informal
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feedback.
5. HBA is helping to address salt perception through
reformulation and added salt reduction, complementing the
FSA’s salt reduction targets.

12. Contact details
Jemma Grime
Project Manager
01942 486 772
j.grime@wigan.gov.uk