Health watchdog puts bite on fatty meat pie

By Louisa Cleave

The traditional Kiwi meat pie in a paper bag has been targeted by health authorities, which want to cut down the fat content and provide labels with consumer information.

New Zealanders eat 20 million pies a year and in the process consume 480 tonnes of fat, at a cost of $57.8 million for households, according to a survey by Auckland Healthcare.

The fat in pies varies between 7.1 per cent and 19.2 per cent, or 12.9g to 33.5g per pie.

However, the amount of fat - about the size of a golf ball - is less than in other fast foods, says public health dietitian Jenny Yee.

A serving of fish and chips contains 64.5g of fat, a deep-fried chicken portion 31.2g and a hamburger 17.5g.

The staple mince pie had the highest fat levels in the survey - between 10 per cent and 19.2 per cent - with mince and cheese pies between 12.4 per cent and 18.9 per cent.

Potato-top and cottage pies had the lowest fat content, 7.1 per cent to 9.2 per cent, while a curried vegetable pie in wholemeal pastry contained 7.6 per cent, or 15.2g of fat.

After a similar approach to fish and chip shops last year, the authority will contact pie-makers to discuss ways of reducing the fat content.

It will recommend labelling so people know how much fat they are eating.

With most fat in a flaky pastry, Jenny Yee said manufacturers could opt for a short or puff pastry base and flaky top to reduce levels.

Even reducing fat by 2 per cent would save pie eaters from consuming 77 tonnes of fat, she said.

"We're not trying to attack the institution of pies. We're making people aware they can contribute quite a lot of fat and making manufacturers aware of the fact they can help us become a healthier nation."

Pie-maker James Buckrell, winner of New Zealand's supreme pie award last year, welcomed the labelling, saying consumers would lose their lunch if they knew what went into some brands of pie.

"You can hide anything in a pie as long as there's a bit of gravy in there.

"Labels should say what cut of meat they're using, how much fat and what the protein level is."

A pie manufacturer manager, who refused to be named, said most manufacturers looked at how to reduce the fat content but it was difficult if consumers wanted puffiness and crispiness in a pie.