Dr. Miriam Stoppard: We must fight against obesity in food producers – Miriam Stoppard

Over several decades of trying to control our problem of obesity, which has now reached epidemic proportions, I felt I was throwing away the towel several times.

Why? Because I can not do anything that affects the growing trend towards larger and larger sizes.

It feels like spitting in the wind. Not only do the portions get bigger, but the larger portions are considered "normal".

Now, the problem is so huge that some experts argue that an international treaty – as for climate change – is needed to counter it, putting particular pressure on the very large industrial producers and processors known as the name of Big Food.

Processed food producers are guilty of undermining daily public health policies, say 43 scientists from 14 countries in a report on obesity.

They also argue that laws are needed to further reduce salt and sugar levels in foods in order to force manufacturers to put warning labels on processed foods and limit marketing to children.

In addition, subsidies to manufacturers of processed foods must be redirected to programs that improve people's health.

They suggest that taxes on red meat would improve diets to fight obesity, reduce greenhouse gases from livestock and free up land for crops.

A quarter to a third of greenhouse gases are due to food manufacturing.

Car-dominated transportation systems generate up to a quarter of the gas and encourage sedentary lifestyles.

A Food Agreement inspired by the World Health Organization's Tobacco Control Framework should exclude the food industry from food policy-making and limit the political influence of Big Food.

Professor Bill Dietz, co-chair of the commission, said, "Although food clearly differs from tobacco because it is necessary to support human life, unhealthy foods and beverages are not.

"The similarities with Big Tobacco lie in the damage they cause and in the behavior of the company that benefits from it."

Professor Corinna Hawkes, a member of the City University London Commission, said: "We are not trying to put the food industry out of business.

"We want it to exist in a different way. We want to see a flourishing entrepreneurial food industry that does not lead to the common denominators of obesity, climate change and under-nutrition. "

As for the tobacco industry, we need a global treaty to prevent food manufacturers from making products harmful to human health and the environment.

Maybe it's time we tackled Big Food in the same way that we treated Big Tobacco, insisting on dramatic warnings on food packaging.