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Press release – University of Auckland
Leaders must stand firmly against powerful business interests and rethink global economic incentives within the food system to tackle common pandemics of obesity, undernutrition and climate change, according to a new report. report…Leaders must strongly oppose powerful business interests and rethink global economic incentives within the food system to fight common pandemics of obesity, undernutrition and climate change, according to a major new report released by the Commission on Lancet Obesity.
Key points:
• The global interplay of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change represents "global syndication" and poses the greatest threat to human and global health, affecting most people in all countries and regions.
• Powerful opposition from commercial interests, a lack of political leadership and a lack of social demand for change prevent action on The Global Syndemic, with rising rates of obesity and greenhouse gas emissions and stagnant rates of undernutrition.
• A new social movement for change and a radical overhaul of relationships between policy makers, business, governance and civil society are urgently needed.
• The Commission calls for a global treaty limiting the political influence of Big Food (proposed framework convention on food systems, inspired by global conventions on tobacco and climate change); $ 5 trillion re-investment of government subsidies to harmful products for sustainable alternatives; and the advocacy of civil society to break decades of political inertia.
Article from Auckland University:
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/fr/news/2019/01/28/global-call-for-joint-action-on-obesity-undernutrition-and-climate-change.html
Video clip available here and on YouTube.
Leaders must stand firmly against powerful business interests and rethink global economic incentives within the food system in order to tackle common pandemics of obesity, undernutrition and climate change, according to a new major report published by the Lancet Commission on Obesity. A key recommendation of the Commission is the call to establish a new global food systems treaty to limit the political influence of Big Food.
Malnutrition in all its forms, including undernutrition and obesity, is by far the leading cause of ill health and premature death worldwide. Climate change is expected to significantly worsen undernutrition and obesity [1].
The report follows the publication (17 January) of the Lancet-EAT Commission, which provided the first scientific targets for a healthy diet within the limits of the planet [2]. At present, the new report badyzes the broader systems that underlie the global obesity pandemic and identifies solutions to address decades of policy failure.
Over the past two decades, obesity, undernutrition and climate change have been considered distinct and policy responses have been excessively slow due to reluctance by policymakers to implement effective policies, strong opposition of commercial interests and insufficient demand for change on the part of decision-makers. public and civil society. Undernutrition is declining too slowly to reach global targets, no country has reversed its obesity epidemic, and global policy measures to address the threat of climate change have barely begun.
"Until now, undernutrition and obesity were considered polar opposites consisting of too few or too many calories. In fact, they are both inspired by the same unhealthy and inequitable food systems, supported by the same political economy focused on economic growth and ignoring negative health and equity outcomes. Climate change has the same story of profits and power, ignoring the environmental damage caused by current food systems, transportation, urban design and land use. By combining the three pandemics together, The Global Syndemic allows us to envision shared factors and shared solutions, with the goal of breaking decades of political inertia, "said Co-Chair Professor Boyd Swinburn of the Auckland University. [3]
Led by the University of Auckland (New Zealand), George Washington University (United States) and the World Obesity Federation (United Kingdom), the new Lancet The Commission is the result of a three-year project led by 43 experts from 14 different countries [4].
The new Commission defines The Global Syndemic as the global interactions of pandemics of obesity, undernutrition and climate change, which are linked by common drivers and shared solutions. Global syndics are food and agriculture policies, transport, urban design and land use systems, which in turn are motivated by economic policies and incentives. which promote overconsumption and inequality.
Among the actions recommended, the Commission advocates the creation of a framework convention on food systems, similar to the global conventions on tobacco control and climate change, to limit the influence of industry in the development of policies and mobilize national action for tobacco control. healthy, equitable and sustainable food systems.
Economic incentives need to be rethought and government subsidies of $ 5,000 billion for fossil fuels and the world's leading agricultural enterprises must be reallocated to sustainable, healthy and environmentally friendly activities. In addition, a $ 1 billion global philanthropic fund must be created to help civil society advocate for change.
"The dominant business model of large international food and beverage companies, focused on maximizing short-term profits, results in over-consumption of nutrient-poor foods and beverages in high-income and high-income countries. increasingly in low- and middle-income countries. The coexistence of obesity and stunting among the same children in some countries is an urgent alarm signal – and both will be exacerbated by climate change. Stimulating global syndemacy requires urgent rethinking of how we eat, live, consume and move, including a radical shift to a sustainable business model that promotes health, adapted to the future challenges we face. we are facing today, "says Dr. Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief, The lancet. [3]
Global syndication: common drivers demand shared solutions
Global syndication represents a synergy of pandemics that occur over time and in space, interact with each other, and share common underlying societal factors. For example, food systems not only feed the pandemics of obesity and undernutrition, but also generate 25 to 30% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and livestock production accounts for more than half . Car-dominated transportation systems support sedentary lifestyles and generate between 14 and 25% of GHGs. All of this is based on weak political governance systems, the undisputed economic pursuit of GDP growth, and the powerful commercial engineering of overconsumption.
Obesity, undernutrition and climate change also interact. For example, climate change will increase undernutrition by increasing food insecurity resulting from extreme weather events, droughts and changes in agriculture. Similarly, fetal and infant malnutrition increases the risk of obesity in adults. Climate change can also affect the prices of staple foods, especially fruits and vegetables, potentially increasing the consumption of processed foods.
"We need to recognize these links and implement dual-action actions that address both obesity and undernutrition and three-pronged actions that simultaneously affect multiple parts of the syndrome," said the Commissioner, Corinna Hawkes, City University London, UK. [3]. Guidelines for a sustainable diet, limiting trade influences, right to well-being legislation and policies for healthy, equitable, economically sustainable and economically viable food systems would all have an impact on obesity, undernutrition and climate change (that is, or winning triple actions). Additional examples might include:
• Reducing the consumption of red meat through taxes, redistributing subsidies, labeling health and the environment, and setting up social marketing would lead to healthier diets for cancer prevention and prevention. obesity, more land for efficient and sustainable agriculture, offering opportunities to reduce undernutrition and GHG emissions from agriculture. .
• Supporting active transportation through infrastructure, taxes and subsidies, as well as social marketing strategies, would lead to increased physical activity and a less sedentary period, with an impact on the prevention of obesity. lower access to healthy food and employment, potentially reducing poverty and undernutrition, and reducing GHG emissions from transport.
"These actions must also align with a healthier economy," Hawkes said. "We need long-term decision makers and private sector leaders to advance actions that produce benefits for obesity, undernutrition, the economy and sustainability." [3]
Business interests: a powerful engine of The Global Syndemic
Economic power is increasingly concentrated in smaller, larger businesses. The main strategies used by the food industry to impede obesity prevention policies include the adoption of self-regulation to anticipate or delay regulation by the state, the efforts public relations describing the industry as socially responsible while undermining and challenging the strength of scientific evidence, direct lobbying of the government-makers decision, and frame nutrition as a matter of individual responsibility.
"The power of the market comes with political power, and even governments willing to fight to enforce policies against the pressure of the industry. A new dynamic of governance is needed to break the political inertia preventing any action. Governments must regain the power to act in the interest of peoples and the planet, and global treaties contribute to it. Acquired business interests must be excluded from the policy table and civil society must have a stronger voice in policy development. Without such upheavals, we will maintain the status quo that drives The Global Syndemic, "said Commissioner Tim Lobstein, World Federation of Obesity, London, UK. [3].
Attempts to include sustainability in national food recommendations in the United States and Australia have failed because of pressure from the food industry to erode the sustainability of its mandate. In the United States, fossil fuel subsidies keep gasoline prices artificially low, encourage car use and discourage investment in active and public transportation. In 2016-17, the soft drinks sector spent $ 50 million to lobby against local initiatives to reduce soda consumption, and research funded by this sector is five times less likely to find an badociation between sugary drinks. and obesity compared to other studies.
The impediment to the food industry is reinforced by governance mechanisms that legitimize its participation in public policy making and the power of large corporations to punish or reward governments by relocating investments and jobs. In addition, illegal marketing practices in one country have been introduced or are maintained in unregulated countries. In Nepal, Ghana, South Africa and Mongolia, the marketing of sweet drinks is common around schools and school entrances are not acceptable in high-income countries.
Regulatory approaches to product reformulation (eg salt and sugar reduction), labeling and marketing to children are needed as industry-led voluntary approaches have not been implemented. not been effective. Government-led but still voluntary quasi-regulatory approaches (such as Public Health England's sugar reformulation program) may be more effective, but clear methods of accountability and sanctions for non-compliance are needed.
A framework convention on food systems inspired by the tobacco and climate change treaties
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) provide valuable models for a comprehensive approach to addressing the negative effects of the food system on health and the environment.
Commission calls for new Framework Convention on Food Systems (FCFS) to bring together key players in food systems in a common agreement, allowing governments to add elements of public health, social equity and protection of the environment.
Based on FCTC Article 5.3, a new FCFS would explicitly exclude the food industry from policy making. Such a commitment would recognize the fundamental and irreconcilable conflict that exists between the interests of certain food and drink industries and those of public health and the environment; that all parties must be transparent and accountable when dealing with industry or striving to defend their interests; and that no tax advantage or incentive for the manufacture of food and drink products harmful to human health and the environment should exist.
"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 companies that benefit from it. A Framework Convention on Food Systems would help individual countries defend themselves against commercial interests, reorient the vast subsidies that currently benefit unhealthy industries, and provide full transparency, "said Professor William H. Dietz, author, George University Washington, DC (United States). [3]
Grants that promote health problems must be redirected
In 2015, global subsidies from governments to the fossil fuel industries amounted to about US $ 5.3 trillion per year, and nearly half a trillion US dollars were allocated to agricultural subsidies (mainly for beef and dairy products, as well as for cereals intended for animal feed or ultra-processed). in the 21 major food producing countries each year.
As industries increase their profits, current and future generations of taxpayers overwhelmingly endure the damage to their products on the environment and health. The Commission argues that these subsidies should be redirected to encourage healthy and ecologically sustainable agriculture. In addition, the costs of products such as red meat and gasoline should reflect the costs of their damage to the environment.
New business models adapted to the challenges of the 21st century are needed to encourage sustainable enterprises to support the public good and broaden their scope to explicitly include health, social and economic benefits. 39; environment.
Civil society: an indispensable force of rupture
Effective strategies for dealing with global syndication are unlikely to succeed without a broader base of support. The recent withdrawal of the United States from the Paris agreement on climate change shows the fragility of agreements that may change depending on the policy of the countries concerned. Despite the administration's decision, 2,700 leaders of cities, states, and businesses representing 159 million people and a GDP of $ 6.2 trillion continued their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse.
The mobilization of civil society has been crucial to spark commitment to a tax on sweetened beverages in Mexico. Despite the strong resistance of the beverage industry aimed at diluting the proposed measures, a 10% tax has been added to sugary drinks. In two years, the consumption of sugary drinks has been reduced by 7.6%.
The Commission is requesting US $ 1 billion from philanthropic and other sources to help 100 countries apply the Mexican approach to implementing their food and nutrition policies.
"In recent years, activism has resumed at the local level, whether in cities, communities or in particular areas. As with other social movements, such as campaigns to introduce taxes on sweetened beverages, efforts to fight global unionism are more likely to begin at the community, city, or community level. State, then nationally or globally. Support for civil society is essential to break the political stalemate and systems at the root of global union, "said Professor Dietz. [3][1] Key facts on obesity, undernutrition and climate change:
• Excess body weight would affect 2 billion people worldwide, causing 4 million deaths, for an annual cost of US $ 2 billion, or 2.8% of global GDP.
• Meanwhile, stunting and wasting affects 155 million people and 52 million children worldwide, 2 billion people suffer from a micronutrient deficiency and 815 million people suffer from chronic under-nutrition. In Africa and Asia, undernutrition costs between 4 and 11% of GDP.
• The future economic costs of climate change are estimated at 5-10% of global GDP, with costs in low-income countries exceeding 10% of GDP.
• Food production is one of the major contributors to climate change. Agriculture contributes 15 to 23% of all greenhouse gas emissions, which is comparable to transportation. When land conversion, food processing and waste are taken into account, they can reach 29%.
[3] The quotes come directly from the authors and do not appear in the Commission text.
[4] The Lancet Commission on Obesity was created following the publication of two series of series on obesity in 2011 and 2015. The Commission is under the auspices of The Lancet, the University from Auckland, George Washington University and the World Obesity Federation. 26 commissioners from 14 countries, supported by 17 members.
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