Supermarkets could be fined if they don’t provide healthier food for shoppers . A new plan by the Government to tackle obesity has been announced by Downing Street, looking to improve the quality of food and stop the rising rate of obesity in the country. Under the new scheme, a ” healthy food standard” will be brought in to all supermarkets and other retailers stocking food. The standard will also be applied to manufactures in England as part of a major 10-year scheme in order to bring down diseases related to one’s diet, including the development of diabetes. In a press release given by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), the government is working together with other lobbying groups, as well as agency Nesta. In the proposed policy, supermarkets, retailers and manufacturers will bring in mandatory targets for healthy options. However, retailers – such as Tesco , Asda or Sainsbury’s – will be given flexibility on how to implement the standards, such as being able to tweak their recipes to be more healthy. Other options that have been suggested by ministers include running prime promotions on healthier items, as well as redesigning the layout of a shop to better improve the psychological choices shoppers make. All data regarding sales will have to be submitted to the government, with those who are failing set to be hit with fines and other sanctions. During its research, Nesta looked at some 36 million different supermarket transactions, and found that the average score in terms for healthy options was 67. The group now wants to raise the score to 69, showing that two points of a raise would help to cut obesity rates by about 20% over the course of three years, with over three million people set to benefit from healthier weight. Speaking on the new scheme, Health Secretary Wes Streeting explained that if the average person cut down their intake by 200 calories a day, obesity in England could be halved. “This Government鈥檚 ambition for kids today is for them to be part of the healthiest generation of children ever. “That is within our grasp,” he added, “with the smart steps we鈥檙e taking today, we can give every child a healthy start to life. Our brilliant supermarkets already do so much work for our communities and are trying to make their stores healthier, and we want to work with them and other businesses to create a level playing field.” He went on to say: “Through our new healthy food standard, we will make the healthy choice the easy choice. Because prevention is better than cure.” Plans released by the government have projected mandatory supermarket reporting to ministers to begin by the end of the current parliament in 2029, with current projections for the standard set to be achieved a short time into the next government. The move has been welcomed by those working in the supermarket industry, with the CEO on Tesco Ken Murphy hailing the move as an “important and positive step forward” to helping the country eat better. As well as this, Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: 鈥淭his is a fair and evidence-based prescription for better health. big businesses urgently need the government to level the playing field to help them focus on selling products that help people live well.” For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters .