Crisp manufacturers have denied their products are to blame for growing obesity in society.
Representatives of the Snack Food Council, the umbrella group for savoury snack manufacturers, told an Oireachtas committee yesterday their products were not a significant contributor to the problem.
"There isn't a problem having a bar of chocolate or a packet of crisps if you're out kicking a ball around," PJ Brigdale of Tayto told the Committee on Food and Agriculture.
"As responsible food manufacturers, we believe all foods eaten in moderation can play a part in a balanced diet, including savoury snack products such as potato crisps."
Mr Brigdale said the industry had responded to calls for healthier products but he warned that there was a "glass ceiling" to these products in relation to taste. Consumers might say they wanted healthier food but if improvements affected taste they were quickly consigned to the "ghetto" of diet products.
He cited research by the Irish Universities' Nutrition Alliance that showed the average child eats half a pack of savoury snacks a day. Some 14 per cent of children don't eat such snacks at all.
Savoury snacks accounted for just 5-7 per cent of the fat and salt intake of Irish children, he said. Children consuming high amounts of snacks still had a good diet and there was no difference in the body fat of children who ate snacks and those who didn't, the research found.
The average packet of crisps contained half as much fat as a Danish pastry, one-third the saturated fat of a bar of chocolate, the same salt levels as a slice of bread and the same calories as a pot of yogurt, he said.
Manufacturers had reduced the salt content in crisps and most now used sunflower oils containing less fat and cholesterol, he added. Mr Brigdale said portion size was a matter of choice. He agreed labelling regulations could be improved but described as "idiocy" proposals to use "traffic-light" labelling to indicate healthy and unhealthy foods.
The savoury snack food market is estimated to be worth €220 million a year, or 3 per cent of the entire food industry. It employs about 1,000 people and sources 95 per cent of its potatoes from Ireland.
