One large scone can equal a third of recommended daily calories, survey shows

A large scone can equate to a third of recommended daily calories, a survey showed.

Some contain a whopping 740 calories and are the equivalent of 10 sugar cubes.

In 2018, Northern Ireland’s 11 district councils sampled a variety of plain, luxury and fruit scones from local coffee shops and cafes across the country.

The scone with the highest fat content (22.7g fat) was a raspberry and white chocolate luxury scone, while the largest, a fruit scone, contained in the region of 750kcal and 39.2g of sugar, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said.

Currently, 64% of adults and 27% of children aged 2-15 in Northern Ireland are classified as overweight or obese.

Fionnuala Close, senior dietary health adviser at the FSA in Northern Ireland, said: “Typically, our diets contain too much sugar, saturated fat and salt yet, at the same time, we’re not consuming enough fruit, vegetables and wholegrain foods.

“As scones tend to be a regular favourite for many across Northern Ireland, we felt it was important to raise awareness that this common snack can contain a greater number of calories than consumers may think.

“The availability of choice, in terms of ingredients and scone size, is an important consideration for consumers and producers alike.”

–   The range of calories varied widely from 154kcal to 756kcal.

–   The portion sizes of scones ranged from 44g to 233g.

–   The average scone provided 20g of sugar, which is the equivalent of five sugar cubes.

– The range of sugar per scone varied between 3.1g to 39.2g, with fruit scones generally providing higher sugar levels.