Industry chiefs have slammed national reports warning consumers of the threat posed by apples to their dental health.
An article appeared in the Sunday Times closely tailed by Monday's edition of the Mirror focussing on the fact that average sugar levels in apples had risen from 11 per cent ten years ago to 15 per cent today.
Pink Lady, Fuji and Braeburn were named as the worst offending varieties.
Because of the high sugar content, dentists were quoted as saying that cheese was a better option than top fruit for weaning children off chocolate.
And King's College London's Tom Sanders told the Mirror: 'Research shows that snacking on fruit between meals is now bad advice. There is not much difference between apple juice, Sunny Delight or cola in terms of sugar content.' But leading fruit experts have warned that the reports are sending out a dangerous message to the consumer, that could unravel the hard work done by the industry to promote fresh produce and spell a return to consumers snacking on low-sugar but high-fat foods like cheese and crisps.
British Independent Fruit Growers Association John Breach said: 'The apple is a very natural product, it's not a manufactured product and if you have got any complaints you better get in touch with God.
'The point is if you have to much of anything it can be bad for you. I'm not a scientist but all its properties point to a good old apple a day keeping the doctor away. As for the dentist, that's another matter. But the apple has antioxidants and vitamin C. It has a lot going for it.' Meanwhile, ADAS fruit juice expert Dr David Pennell criticised the press coverage.
He said: 'What these stories do is home in on one aspect, and what they have not done here is focus on the nutritional attributes as a whole. I don't know whether there are positive correlations between natural sugars and dental problems, but on the whole fresh fruit compared to snack food is incredibly good.'
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