Waitrose is to cut the sugar in its own-brand breakfast cereals by up to 15% as the food industry grapples with Britain's obesity crisis.
The grocer said its commitment would involve a 15% sugar reduction in its own-brand cornflakes - one of its top-selling lines - and "significant" cuts in other popular products including honey nut cornflakes and choco pops.
The latest reformulations will strip out more than 7.5 million calories or nearly two tonnes of sugar by the end of this year, while almost 25 tonnes of sugar will have been cut from all Waitrose own-brand products by then, it claimed.
Waitrose has already removed seven tonnes of sugar from chilled juices and 14.6 tonnes from yoghurts while reducing the sugar content of undiluted juices, cordials and squashes by between 5% and 15% without the use of sweeteners and by between 10% and 30% for fizzy drinks.
A number of retailers and supermarkets have cut sugar from products as Britain attempts to control soaring levels of obesity.
Waitrose nutrition manager Moira Howie said: "Breakfast is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle so Waitrose will continue to focus attention on cereals and other popular breakfast choices such as sweet pastries, smoothies, yoghurts and juices in the coming year, so we really can help customers make a healthier choice.
"We have already made significant progress in reducing sugar across everyday items like drinks and yoghurts. However, it is not simply a question of removing sugar, we are also adding healthier ingredients which have nutritional benefits into our own-label range, such as wholegrains, vegetables and fruit."
England's chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies said earlier this month that the food and drink industry is "on notice" that a sugar tax will be brought in unless it curbs the amount of sugar in people's diets.
She said there was "no silver bullet" for tackling Britain's obesity crisis, but reformulating products with less sugar as well as resizing foods would have an impact.
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