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Manufacturers renew global health commitments

CEOs of leading food and beverage manufacturers from around the world have announced a set of enhanced global commitments that will guide their health and wellness strategies over the coming years.

In a letter to World Health Organisation (WHO) Director‐General Dr. Chan, CEOs and members of the International Food & Beverage Alliance (IFBA) announced their renewed commitments, which are based on a set of actions recognised by WHO, governments and civil society as crucial to helping improve global health.

IFBA is a group of eleven global food and non‐alcoholic beverage companies: The Coca‐Cola Company, Ferrero, General Mills, Grupo Bimbo, Kellogg, Mars, McDonald’s, Mondelēz International, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever

By the end of the year, each IFBA member will make and publish a specific corporate commitment which details its goals and progress in reformulating and developing products that help consumers to eat healthier, more balanced diets.

By the end of 2016, members will implement a common global approach to the provision of
nutrition information on pack, at point of sale and through other channels. This will include labelling the energy value for all products on front of pack worldwide.

They will also expand the IFBA Global Policy on Marketing and Advertising to Children, which provides that members either do not market products to children under 12 or if they do, limits what products can be marketed to children under 12. Currently applicable to TV, print and Internet, by the end of 2016 the expanded global policy will cover significantly more media, and ensure that members do not use marketing techniques in ways that are primarily directed to children under 12 for products that do not meet better‐for‐you nutrition criteria.

As part of ongoing efforts to expand and enhance regional and national pledges on marketing to children, members will also work to harmonise nutrition criteria as they have done in the European Union and the USA pledge groups.

Additionally, members have committed to extend workplace wellness programs to help employees improve and sustain overall health and wellbeing, including working towards smoke‐free environments and offering healthy dining choices and nutrition information to staff.

In 2013, IFBA members welcomed the adoption by Member States of the WHO Global Action Plan on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases 2013‐2020 and the “whole‐of‐society” approach endorsed by governments. IFBA’s enhanced commitments include a pledge to work in collaboration with all stakeholders on strategies aimed at reducing sodium and the prevalence of insufficient physical activity called for in the global action plan.
 

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