The UK's biggest supermarket is in talks with rower Sir Steve Redgrave about fronting a major marketing campaign to promote the decision. The initiative, likely to hit shelves before the summer, is a first in the UK supermarket sector.
The use of glycemic indices targets dieters, especially those on regimes dependant on levels of carbohydrates, such as the Atkins Diet, and athletes who need to restore their blood-sugar levels after exercise.
The labelling will also be good news for diabetics, who need to regulate the levels of sugar that are absorbed into the bloodstream.
Redgrave himself suffers from diabetes and is vice-president of the Diabetes UK charity. It will not be the first time Redgrave has fronted a nutritional campaign; in 2001, he was the face of Flora Pro-Activ.
Tesco will back the labelling with a marketing campaign through Lowe, with Redgrave appearing in TV work. Neither Tesco nor Lowe would comment on the news as Marketing went to press.
The glycemic index is a ranking of carbohydrates based on their immediate effect on blood glucose levels. It was invented in Australia and is widely used on food packaging there.
In December last year, Boots became the first major retailer to tap into the diet craze by signing a deal with the company behind the Atkins Diet food range to distribute its low-carbohydrate products in the UK.
Boots was also the first retailer to sign a distribution deal with Atkins Nutritional. At the time, Sainsbury's said it had no plans to stock the range.
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