Health bosses spark outrage after calling for Cornish pasties to be made WITHOUT PASTRY to cut calories

NANNY-STATE health chiefs want traditional Cornish pasties made without pastry to cut their calories.

Bosses at an NHS trust think the shortcrust around the 600-year-old treat is too fattening.

They want to surround the beef, spuds, onion and swede filling with lower-fat pasta instead.

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs all three major hospitals in the county, is developing the recipe with its catering firm.

The pasties will be sold in its­ restaurants and shops but could be rolled out nationwide.

Furious critics said “interfering” with Cornish pasties in Cornwall was “beyond the pale” and vowed to stay loyal to the recipe.

Christopher Snowdon from the Institute of Economic Affairs, added: “Make salads and other low-calorie options available by all means, but stop trying to reformulate Britain’s finest foods.”

The storm erupted after the trust’s food boss Jill Venables told Public Health England’s annual conference about its new pasty — which will be lower in fat and calories.

Jill, who is originally from Yorkshire, said: “One of the problems I have is I’m managing facilities in Cornwall and you know what traditionally everyone wants — it’s the Cornish pasty. Some people eat three a day. It’s really difficult”

A large Cornish pasty contains around 770 calories — more than a third of a woman’s recommended daily intake.

It also has 21g of saturated fat, which is 1g more than they should have in an entire day.

The Cornish Pasty Association said the term “Cornish pasty” is protected under law and the new recipe would fall foul of the rules.

And Malcolm Bell, chief exec of Visit Cornwall tourist board said: “Most of us are clever enough to make our own decisions about what we eat — we don’t need the nannying NHS to nag us.”

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