Professor Philip James, chairman of the International Obesity Task Force and a former chief food safety adviser to Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair, met Health Minister Pete Hodgson, doctors and Maori health groups last week.

He said there was an enormous and out of control public health crisis relating to being overweight.

"The problem has been you have always assumed if anyone gets fat it's their own problem. But actually it's the poorest people who are fattest and have the biggest difficulties with diabetes." The food industry was selling food in larger quantities and with a higher fat and sugar content, and fruit, vegetables and grains had become less affordable. "You've manipulated, with Government approval and huge grants in the past, the whole of the industry, and the way in which you work, and live, and the foods you serve up in New Zealand are beautifully designed to guarantee that most people are putting on weight." Maori and Pacific Island communities were particularly at risk, with many being struck by type 2 diabetes at a younger age and having obesity rates on a par with the United States, he said. Ten per cent of New Zealand children and 21 per cent of adults are obese, and health experts estimate 1.5 million Kiwis can be classed as overweight or obese. Type 2 diabetes is directly related to a high-fat diet and excess weight, and its incidence is increasing. Professor James said if nothing was done, hospital services would eventually not be able to cope with the number of casualties from the obesity epidemic. It was not enough to tell people to change their diet.