LONDON – Retail Express reports that the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) in Canada has mocked up images of plain packaging on food and drink products, namely soft drinks.

Alex Scholten, president of the Canadian Convenience Stores Association, told Retail Express that the OMA’s packaging designs were an international concern. “We’re very troubled by this, and we absolutely see it as a threat,” he said.

“Not only would it mean challenges for the industry, but it appears the products and services we provide are being singled out as the sole cause of unhealthy lifestyles, which is completely unfair,” Scholten continued. “In Canada, health advocacy groups are saying plain packaging on tobacco has worked so well it should be used on all unhealthy products.

Scholten told the news source that convenience stores in Canada are not only being targeted by health campaigners, but also politicians who are likely to gravitate toward policies such as plain packaging on foods and beverages as a means to raise tax revenue. 

“Where does this end?" Scholten said. "These are very complex issues, so to single out single products or product categories is extremely unfair; we don’t agree with that approach at all.”

The OMA in Canada has been involved in many anti-tobacco campaigns, and believes the “lessons learned from the strategies of the tobacco control movement should be applied to the fight against obesity.” The group supports increased taxes on “junk foods” and supports warning labels on foods that are high in sugar and fat and contain little nutritional value.

In the United Kingdom, Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs, told the news source that if the country continues its current policy environment, it too could consider plain packaging on food and drink products. “It’s not imminent, but it is accelerating,” he said.

“We’ll soon see the introduction of the sugar tax, and there’s talk of advertising bans on certain products, so plain packaging is very much in the cards,” Snowdon told the news source, adding, “Based on current trends, fizzy drinks would be the first products to be targeted.”