Taking away fast food health risks

Anonymous samples of meals were taken from all Featherstone takeaway outlets and analysed in the lab by West Yorkshire Analytical Services for calorie content, saturated fat, trans fat and salt.

Takeaway owners were given the results and encouraged to modify their cooking to reduce fat and salt.

Further samples showed that all nine participating takeaways had improved in at least one area.

The project was funded by NHS Wakefield.

Each takeaway received a certificate which highlighted their “most improved” meal.

Dr Andrew Furber, director of public health, said: “This is an excellent example of how even small changes can lead to improvements in health.

“By making small changes to the way that food is prepared, takeaway owners can make a big difference to the nutritional quality of their food. This in turn helps local residents make the healthier choices they are telling us they want to make.”

Featherstone was chosen due to its high number of takeaways per head of population.