Portugal bans junk food retailers in national health service hospitals

People waiting for medical appointments in Portugal will no longer be able to get their hands on a bag of crisps or a chocolate bar. At least not in hospitals belonging to the country's national health service.

In a bid to set an example of healthy eating, Portugal's minister for health Adalberto Campos Fernandes on Wednesday revealed to Portuguese parliament the country would ban machines selling foods and drinks filled with sugar or salt.

He said the legislation would be published in a matter of days.

Portugal's previous government had discussed the introduction of a special tax on these kinds of food, dubbed "fat taxes" to combat obesity. However, former health minister Paulo Macedo decided this was not the right move to encourage healthy eating.

Several European countries have banned junk food in hospitals and also introduced these taxes, with a report by the EU claiming that these specific taxes do actually work in reducing consumption of these products.

Denmark introduced the world's first fat tax in 2011 under heavy criticism, but it was revoked in 2013.

The United Kingdom banned junk food in hospitals in 2015 to crack down on obesity. Vending machines are only allowed to sell sweet portions smaller than 250 grams and sugary drinks limited to 20 percent of those on offer.

George Osborne recently introduced a fat tax on sugary drinks, which will raise over 500 million pounds (735 million U.S. dollars) a year for the British treasury. Endit