Portugal’s Minister of Health, Adalberto Campos Fernandes, has announced plans to ban products with high salt and sugar content from being sold in vending machines located in healthcare facilities.
In a statement, the minister said that the measure is intended to give an example of 'good dietary practice' in Portuguese health service institutions. Following the move, carbonated soft drinks, potato chips, chocolate and energy drinks cannot be sold in public hospitals and health centers.
The previous Portuguese government had been mulling the introduction of a tax on these types of foods, also known as 'fat tax', which is already in place in several other European countries.
Last month, local daily Correio da Manhã reported that Minister Campos Fernandes was also considering adopting this initiative and is said to be evaluating different potential tax rates.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
