Takeaway dishes fail fat and salt test

The worst offenders were a large haddock and chips and a portion of sweet and sour pork and fried rice, which both hit the scales with a whopping 44g of saturated fat – more than twice a female’s recommended daily allowance and nearly 50 per cent over a man’s.

Of the eight tested, seven were over a female’s RDA.

Similarly when 11 different fast foods were tested for salt, more than half the meals were over an adult’s RDA.

Trading standards officers from North Lincolnshire Council will now advise the takeaways on what steps they can take to reduce the amount of fat and salt.

Eating too much salt has been linked to high blood pressure and stomach cancer and saturated fats are the biggest cause of high cholesterol and can cause heart disease.

Coun Nigel Sherwood said: “While people might be shocked by some of the findings, the real area of concern is for those who eat takeaway food on a regular basis. There are no restrictions on the amounts they can use so we can only offer advice on making their food healthier.”