New food labelling system announced

Press Association – 17 hours ago

Food labelling will be made consistent across all supermarkets so that shoppers can easily spot the healthiest option, it is expected to be announced.

The new labelling system will provide consumers with clear information on the content of the food, Health Minister Anna Soubry said.

The new system will include information on guideline daily amounts (GDAs), be colour coded with a traffic light system and use the words "high" "medium" or "low" to inform people about how much fat, saturated fat, salt, sugar and calories are in food products.

Ms Soubry said: "The UK already has the largest number of products with front of pack labels in Europe but research has shown that consumers get confused by the wide variety of labels used.

"By having a consistent system we will all be able to see at a glance what is in our food. This will help us all choose healthier options and control our calorie intake.

"Obesity and poor diet cost the NHS billions of pounds every year. Making small changes to our diet can have a big impact on our health and could stop us getting serious illnesses, such as heart disease, later in life."

The design of the new label is yet to be decided, a Department of Health spokeswoman said. The new label is expected to be in use by summer next year.

Peter Hollins, chief executive at the British Heart Foundation, said: "This is a quantum leap for public health and the result of tireless work by health campaigners and positive action by our governments.

"It's now down to each and every retailer and manufacturer to step up and introduce these consistent front of pack food labels, including traffic light colours, so shoppers can make healthy food choices at a glance."

Richard Lloyd, executive director at consumer group Which?, added: "With levels of obesity and diet-related disease on the increase it's vitally important that people know what's in their food so that they can make an informed choice."

Apple launches iPad Mini with 7.9-inch screen

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/apple-ipad-mini-launches.html

Apple today unveiled a smaller version of its hit iPad tablet - a 7.9-inch device expected to become the most popular tablet on the market.

Yahoo! News – Tue, Oct 23, 2012

Althia Sailsman read this

Apple today unveiled a smaller version of its hit iPad tablet - a 7.9-inch device 7.2mm thick and half the weight of previous iPads.

The machine will start at $330, £269 in the UK.

It has a 10-hour battery life and runs the same apps as older iPads.

It is available to pre-order from Friday and will ship from November 2 in the United States. Other territories will wait longer for the device.

The company also unveiled a new, faster 'iPad 4', with a faster processor and longer battery life. It will be the first iPad to run on EE's 4G network in the UK.

[Related: iPad Mini - hands on with the rivals]

Apple's tablet already dominates the touchscreen tablet market, with 100 million devices sold.

The device was shown off by Apple CEO Tim Cook in an event in San Jose, California and streamed around the world by video.

The device is the first 'new' product line unveiled by new Chief Executive Tim Cook, who took over from co-founder Steve Jobs just before his death.

Jobs himself was reportedly against the idea of a seven-inch tablet.

The company also unveiled a new 13-inch version of its Macbook computers, armed with a Retina screen, similar to the one in iPad 2. The new laptop is 0.75in thick.

SAN JOSE, CA - OCTOBER 23: Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide product marketing Phil Schiller announces the …

Apple has sold 100 million iPads, and claims that 91% of web traffic from tablet devices comes from its tablet computers.

The device is seen by analysts as a response to the demand for Android devices such as Amazon's Kindle and Google's Nexus 7.

The sales of such devicess at lower end of the tablet market and proved demand for a pocket-sized slate exists.

"Apple sensed early that they had a real winner with the iPad and that has proven to be correct," said Lars Albright, co-founder of mobile advertising startup SessionM and a former Apple ad executive.

Live: Apple's Big Little iPad Event has been trailed with brightly coloured invitations

"They have a large market share, and to protect that market share they have got to be innovative," he said.

Wall Street analysts have said for months that Apple was planning a less expensive version of the iPad to take on cheaper competing devices.

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