The independent takeaways, cafes, restaurants and bakeries in our neighbourhoods and high streets are hugely important parts of our communities and our local economies. They are an integral part of the OOH sector which includes any food or drink purchased for immediate consumption outside the home.

In Scotland we spend £3.6 billion each year on food and drinks from cafes, takeaways and restaurants in the OOH sector, making an average of nearly three trips each a week and equating to more than a quarter of the total Scottish spend on food and drink. But, with a quarter of the calories consumed coming from food eaten in the OOH sector in Scotland, it contributes significantly to our obesity crisis.

In Scotland, 67% of adults live with excess weight – the highest figure of any UK nation and one that has grown dramatically over the last 30 years. Obesity is now the leading cause of death in Scotland and is linked to 23% of all deaths.

The calorie content of OOH foods is often higher than that of food eaten at home as portion sizes are often bigger and foods are typically high in fat, sugar and salt.

By working closely with local business owners, we gained valuable evidence and insight into what is needed to make the OOH sector healthier. And with better understanding how – and how not – to reduce the calorie content of OOH menu items and create customer demand for healthier options, we could demonstrate how businesses can improve the healthiness of their food without compromising on profitability.

This evidence will be fed into the Scottish Government plans to introduce the Eating Out Eating Well voluntary framework to improve healthiness for the independent out of home sector.

We worked with real local business owners – running, for example, the chippies, kebab shops, Indian takeaways or pizzerias – and helped them to make their products healthier, make healthier products more accessible and attractive and work with businesses to generate customer demand in their local neighbourhood.

Every business is different, so we worked with them to understand their individual contexts and what's unique about their menus. We helped them prepare to make tailored changes and be there to hear feedback as the changes are trialled.

Over the course of several months, we supported businesses to test new ideas and, by working directly with business owners throughout the process, contributed valuable evidence about how Scotland can make the OOH sector healthier along the way.