Meat Pie - Kiwi Classic Put on Diet

That Kiwi Classic, the meat pie, has been slimmed down. In response to growing consumer concern about obesity rates, pie manufacturers are altering their recipes for the Kiwi staple which has clogged the arteries of generations.

Goodtime Foods claims its line of Metro pies are lower in saturated fat and sodium with higher fibre content. The PR flyer on their website suggests the total fat content of the typical pie back in 1963 was 30g., something less than the size of a golf ball. By 2007 the typical pie was down to 23 g of total fat, 13.6 saturated fat. Now, the average Metro pie has just 13 g of total, 7.7 saturated fat.

In comparison, McDonald's Big Mac (US version) weighs in at 29 g of total fat, 10g saturated. Throw in a small bag of chips/fries and it's another 11 g total fat, 1.5 saturated.

The Heart Foundation has been so impressed it's given a heart-healthy tick to the Metros. Goodtime does add the proviso that while Metros are a healthier choice, "they are an occasional food and should be eaten in moderation as part of a healthy, balance (sic) diet"

Apparently, Goodtime's other pie brands - The Classic and the Hub - are so nutritionally beneficial to its patrons that there is no need to post their nutrition facts on its website. Uni students can continue to eat them safely for breakfast.

Goodtime is reported to have infiltrated the Metro into around 500 schools as the nutrition revolution in tuck shops continues unabated.

There are reports, however, that school kids are slipping off the premises to local corner dairies to get a fix of fried chicken. The battle of the waistband continues...