If almost 17 per cent per cent of children aged between two and 10 have grown clinically obese in the last 10 years, what’s the forecast for the next 10 years?

And if 20 per cent of adults (forecast to rise to 33 per cent by 2010) have followed the same pattern, what’s the forecast there?

We are clearly in danger of growing into a nation of Michelin men and women.

So what role does the catering and hospitality industry have to play in this?

In the provision of school meals, that role is clear. They present an opportunity to provide young people with good meals together with the opportunity to educate them about food.

If youngsters can learn about food at school (Jamie Oliver’s programme last year showed that some couldn’t even identify an onion) then that might lead them to a greater understanding of the reasons for obesity.

Now that cooking will become a subject for all 11-14 year olds, this task may be made easier. Ensuring that schools have the budget, the staff resources and equipment is, however, critical.

But it is a step in the right direction and government pressure will undoubtedly instil a gradual but growing awareness of the benefits of healthy eating.

The food service industry generally has a role to play in this, though it is not well defined. Commercial caterers are in the business to make a profit.

Do Happy Hours just give customers a good deal – or do they encourage binge drinking? Do double-portion burgers with chips help feed the nation economically – or do they just add inches to the waistline? Does the lack of nutritional information on meals (compulsory on most packaged foods) just keep the consumer in a state of blissful ignorance?

Certainly, such issues are concerning the government. There have already been calls to restrict Happy Hours and for caterers to provide nutritional information about their food. The former – along with suggested restrictions on other food promotions – would certainly be regarded by the industry as a restraint on trade, while the latter would be almost impossible to introduce; chefs are not nutritionists and accurate calorie counting would be way beyond their ken.

But the pressure to reduce obesity will not go away and we need to recognise this. The industry provides over 8.6 billion meals a year and consumers spend £36bn on food and drink.

Major food service operators have already responded by cutting back on the use of salt, sugar and fats; those feeding school children are already working to new nutritional guidelines (though budget restraints make this difficult) while food and service management companies now offer healthy option menus in almost every one of their 20,000+ outlets.

Commercial operators have a part to play by acting responsibly within their overriding need for financial success. If they feed their customers’ obesity too well, those customers will die off. The World Health Organisation suggests that 70 per cent of deaths will be obesity-related in the future. We must be careful we don’t play a part in this.

Bob Cotton

Chief Executive