'Skip lunch' proposal hard to digest

ROME: Food-loving Italy responded with indignation yesterday to a minister's comments that lunch breaks - still a sit-down ritual for many Italian workers - are bad for waistlines and the economy, and should be skipped.

While many European peers nibble a sandwich at their desk, most Italian workers still retire en masse to a "tavola calda" (buffet restaurant) or a work canteen for a slap-up meal, often an hour-long affair involving pasta or meat, a vegetable dish, fruit and coffee.

But cabinet minister Gianfranco Rotondi said this encourages shirking and obesity, and makes the working day unnecessarily long, meaning parents get home later to see their children.