Tesco brings welcome note of realism into UK ‘obesity’ debate with Eat Happy campaign debut

Tesco is launching a £15m ‘Eat Happy’ campaign today and the first bit is this ‘Farm To Fork’ exercise, taking a million or so primary age children around the UK to see what it is that ends up on their plate.

The point being to get them to stop scoffing crisps, sweets and chips (sold by Tesco as well as everybody else, of course) at every opportunity.

Nicely done though. Tesco scored mightily years ago with its ‘Computers for Schools’ promotion, maybe this will be another one. Seems a bit more likely to work than the ‘five-a-day’ eat more fruit and veg drive which just seems to confuse people (do potatoes and carrot cake count? No, it seems).

The medical authorities in the UK (and the Government, because treating people costs money) are currently obsessing about the ‘obesity’ crisis, essentially that there are too many fat people, including children. But, being medics, they call people who are slightly overweight obese, which to most of us means someone who can’t turn around in a space smaller than the Albert Hall.

Which also makes most of us wish they would shut up and go and bother someone else.

Tesco’s approach seems somewhat more realistic and useful – so good for them.