Presentation of the Award, sponsored by Pegasus PR, provides the finale of the annual Natural Organic Awards, co-hosted by Natural Products and the Soil Association.

Simply tell us who you most think would be the most deserving winner of this prestigious industry award by emailing editor@naturalproducts.co.uk. If you’d like to support your nomination with a description of up to 250 words, please include this with your email.

In the March issue of Natural Products we’ll publish the list of the 10 nominees who have received the most nominations. We’ll then ask you to vote for the overall winner of the Award

Commenting on the Award, Lisa Bradley, managing director of Pegasus PR, said: “As passionate advocates of the natural health industry for over 15 years, we have been lucky enough to work alongside some of the most exceptional visionaries in this sector. The work of so many inspirational individuals and organisations has ensured natural health has earned its place within the overall health landscape, and we are proud to sponsor the Outstanding Achievement Award at Natural & Organic Products Europe, which celebrates our most exceptional industry ambassadors.”

• Please note that nominations and votes from outside the natural and organic industry will not be counted.

Britain’s latest TV station is now playing on the home page of the Natural Products website. We’ll soon be adding some of our own interviews, vox pops and video diaries — watch out for our cameras at this year’s Natural & Organic  Products Europe too.

In addition to news and views channels, Natural Products TV also offers opportunities for companies to play commercials and corporate videos to our growing online audience — or even sponsor a ‘channel’.  Contact Dominic Robertjot about these exciting new online advertising opportunities on 01273 645128 or at drobejot@divcom.co.uk.

Dr Hilary will be working with Lepicol throughout 2012 on a number of initiatives including writing an educational article for Lepicol entitled ‘Irritable bowel syndrome and the role of fibre’.

Dr Hilary will be available to talk about bowel health in person and distribute copies of his new article on the Lepicol stand (1013) at Natural and Organic Products – London Olympia 1st and 2nd April 2012. (Dr Hilary attending 11am – 2pm Monday 2nd April).

“Maintaining bowel health is incredibly important and fibre can help play an important part in this maintenance. It is exciting to be working with a product such as Lepicol that helps educate and encourage people to think about their bowels.” Dr Hilary Jones

Says Lizzie Hardy, the company’s head of marketing:
“We are delighted to be working with such a well respected healthcare practitioner in order to create even wider awareness of the importance of bowel health”

With just two months to go until the two-day show opens at London’s Olympia on 1^st April, over 7,500 professional industry buyers are expected to attend Europe’s biggest showcase of natural, organic, Fairtrade, free-from and eco-friendly products, featuring over 600 exhibitors from all around the world.

Take a look at the the full exhibitor list at https://onlineexhibitormanual.com/NOPE12/exhi/exhibitorList.aspx.

The findings from researchers at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and Columbia University Medical Center say that people who drink carbonated diet soft drinks regularly are 43 per cent more likely to experience heart attacks, stroke and vacular disease.

Dr Hannah Gardener, who led the research, said: “Our results suggest a potential association between daily diet soft drink consumption and vascular outcomes.

“The mechanisms by which soft drinks may affect vascular events are unclear.”

Last Friday, a short list of just 220 health claims was passed to the European Parliament for its scrutiny. If MEPs vote to give approval of the list only these 220 health claims will able to be used to indicate the beneficial value of commercial food and health food products – including supplements — across all 27 EU member states. Around 2,500 health claims that were controversially rejected by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), will be banned within 6 months.

Calling on MEPs, ANH-Intl’s executive and scientific director, Robert Verkerk PhD, said: “MEPs, like European citizens, rightly want to ensure that misleading information is removed from the marketplace. But the inappropriate standards of proof of benefit required by European authorities mean that thousands of health claims, including such obvious examples as the effects of eating prunes on digestive health, have been thrown out. Also, evaluation of health claims for some groups of nutrients, such as botanicals and probiotics, has yet to be completed, so it would be premature to turn the proposed shortlist of 220 into EU law.”

In addition to releasing a campaign pack for MEPs, ANH-Intl is also urging citizens across the EU to urge their MEPs to vote against the list at the end of a three-month European Parliamentary scrutiny period.

In just 25 years the number of people in Britain aged 85 and over has doubled. It’s expected to double again in the next quarter century.

Living longer ought to be good news, most of us would think. But the ageing process very often comes with some unwelcome features. Chronic ill health and a prescription drug dependency (50% of over 65s are taking five drugs a day) are two of them. In fact, while life expectancy has increased, the average number of disease-free years has declined sharply. So much so that a woman of 20 can look forward to spending 9.8 years virtually immobilised.

But in extensive research analysed by Patrick Holford and Jerome Burne, compelling evidence emerges that it is quite possible to stay healthy into old age, while looking and feeling younger.

Drawing on the “new science of ageing”, the authors show how the markers for how well you age — found in every cell in the body — can be altered by, among other things, the kind of exercise a person does, the food they eat and the way they handle stress. They show how foods and supplements can actually change the activity of genes linked with illness and ageing. And they introduce the concept of the healthy-ageing pyramid, designed to help people make changes to their diet and lifestyle in achievable steps.

This exciting talk is your opportunity to hear Patrick and Jerome discussing these exciting new ideas in an informal interview setting. You’ll get the chance to put your questions to them — and learn how the health food trade can play a key role in this new vision for ageing.

Patrick Holford says:
“There is an urgent need for baby-boomers to reshape and re-invent what it means to grow old. Just as we’re putting out stamp on everything else – pop music, sex, jobs, shopping, housing – now need to create a new vision for ageing.”

Jerome Burne says:
“Our book isn’t about how to reach 120 but how to arrive at the end of a normal life span in as healthy a state as possible.”

• Live interview with Patrick Holford and Jerome Burne. Venue: London Olympia, Keynote Theatre. Date/Time: Sunday 1 April12.45-13.30

This is where we need your help.  We would like to know; how you rate Natural Products; what you like and don’t like; what you want more of – and perhaps hear a little less about!  I hope you will have a spare few minutes to share your views.  To complete the survey simply click here.

Best wishes,

Jim Manson

The bold new designs incorporate photos of each bar, helping the consumer to see exactly what they are buying. Made in a Wiltshire bakery, the traditional flapjack bars contain wholegrain oat goodness in two flavour variants and the three cereal bars are made with oats and rice, combined with fruit, nuts or chocolate.

Wholegrain, high fibre and low fat statements are designed to be easy to see on the front of pack and where appropriate, palm fat used is flagged up as orangutan friendly.

For the foodservice sector and cafes/small retailers, the bars will also be available in a brand new 16-bar display box – perfect for enticing impulse till-buys.

Clare Marriage, CEO said: “All of our organic ingredients are carefully sourced and are Fairtrade where possible. The bars give those who care about the provenance of their food, and the world around them, a healthy snack that has been ethically sourced and produced. Our new packaging proves that organic, natural and ethical doesn’t need to be bland. These new designs have great shelf presence and will give the products inside a well-deserved boost, encouraging new consumers to join the ever growing number of fans of the bars.”

Your NHS No Claims Bonus is just one click away!

In 1965 I had the misfortune to be quite low in cash and lying by a roadside in Delhi unable to walk because of the debilitating pain and exhaustion of hepati- tis. The Holy Family Catholic hospital doctor told me I was in urgent need of hospitalisation, but their reception told me there were no beds. Maybe I should have tried a bit of baksheesh.

So, half walking, half crawl- ing, I ended up in Delhi General. After a day I knew I had to move on. I ended up in Peshawar, then Kabul, where a diet of unleavened wholemeal naan and unsweetened tea finally brought success. Within 3 or 4 days I was back on my feet and functional.

Since then I haven’t messed with my health — when you look into the abyss and realise how fragile life can be, you take more care. I never wanted to find myself in such desperate straits again — helpless, hoping someone can save you and feeling sorry for your parents who might never know what happened to their beloved son.

Since 1967 I have dutifully paid, like every good citizen, my National Insurance contributions which, in today’s money, amounts to about £400,000 over 44 years. During that time I have never cost the NHS one penny and haven’t taken up one minute of a doctor’s time with my health problems. That’s partly down to luck, but I cite diet as the main factor.

The experience in India trig- gered my interest in macrobi- otics and led to a career deci- sion to spread the word about healthy diet. This was the foun- dation on which my brother Gregory and I built Whole Earth Foods and which led, indirectly, to the founding of Green & Black’s. I’ve been OK almost all of

the time, despite setbacks, bereavements, financial anxi- eties and stress from business competition. Sometimes I thought I was going mad, but I

“If I were a careful driver I’d get an annual reduction in my insurance to reflect my clean claims history. Why not health?”

had seen enough of the dam- age anti-depressants can cause to know that I would never go down that route.

When Beveridge mapped out the NHS in 1942 his budget projections confidently predict- ed a steep decline in healthcare costs through the 1950s as indoor sanitation, better nutri- tion, clean water and health education would all reduce dis- ease and its treatment costs. Instead there has been a steady increase in sickness and chron- ic illness, triggered by obesity, environmental toxins, sedentary lifestyles and junk food. How disappointing it would have been for him.

Sir Jack Drummond was the man who named Vitamin A and B and who mapped out Britain’s healthy wartime diet that led to record levels of health, despite all the stress and strain of wartime life. Sir Jack was mysteriously murdered in 1953, or he would have been kicking ass at the DOH to make them do something about the Brits’ abysmal post-war dietary choices once they were free to choose.

If I were a careful driver I’d get an annual reduction in my insurance to reflect my clean claims history. Why not health? If a reduced level of claims reflects a saving in expenditure, what’s wrong with the principle extending to National Insurance? Charging people higher contributions/premiums for being sick all the time might be going too far, but rewarding people for conscientiously look- ing after their health shouldn’t be seen as reprehensible. I’d settle for a ‘cashback’ — or perhaps the money saved could be tagged onto my pension on retirement? Good national health policy should include carrots as well as sticks. The state offers no material incen- tive to look after one’s health, just confusing exhortations. A no claims discount would address this. I’m sure Beveridge would approve. And Sir Jack.