The French governments proposal to classify food using colour-coded labels, ranging from green to red, in a bid to combat growing obesity in the country has been met by resistance from the Confederation of French Chocolate and Pastry Makers.

The Confederation – which represents more than 4,500 chocolatiers and pastry makers in France – has started a social media campaign, including a Facebook page and a Twitter account, to oppose the move as it would see most chocolate and cake products requiring a red warning label, indicating that they are unhealthy.

In response to the news, Nick Martin, SVP, Trace One, says, "While more information and transparency with consumers is a good thing, this also needs to be balanced with what is important to the consumer. Most consumers are aware that chocolate has a high level of fat and sugar and the benefits of legislation like this are likely to be outweighed by the disruption to chocolates image, something that would not be well received by loyal consumers. These customers may find information like 80% cocoa solids of more relevance to informing decisions, rather than sugar and fat contents, and it could be argued that it is more important this information is displayed on all chocolate products to maintain standards of quality.

"It might also be more pertinent to include enjoyed as part of a healthy lifestyle, given research has shown activity has a major part to play in the fight against obesity. While there is room for improved transparency in the labelling of food products, any changes must present a clear benefit and be agreed with consumers and the industry to be genuinely effective."