Johannesburg, 7 September 2022: The unhealthy packaged food you buy your family may be high in sugar, salt and saturated fat – all of which have been directly linked to life-threatening conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. However, one of the reasons that many people are unable to make healthier food choices is because the labels on packaged food products are unclear and confusing. It’s therefore important for people to know what’s hidden in their food so they can make more informed food choices, which is why advocacy group, Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA), is rolling out a media campaign in September, calling for bold front-of-package labels (FoPLs).
Nzama Mbalati, HEALA’s Programme’s Manager, says: “New research shows that warning labels on unhealthy packaged food would be a feasible and equitable policy to help South Africans identify and reduce purchasing of unhealthy food.”1
“While new draft legislation on packaging is waiting in the wings, there have been protracted delays, so HEALA is urging consumers and community organisations, traditional leaders and NGOs to call for change. It is time to empower shoppers with the information they need to make the right decisions and protect their families’ health,” says Mbalati.
Mbalati continues: “At the moment, one needs to be as informed as a dietician to know what the information at the back of a packet of food means. To empower consumers, we need front-of-package labels to help them identify what the industry is selling to them.”
The nationwide campaign, ‘What’s in our Food?’, which will be flighted on television, radio and digital media, urges people to question what hidden ingredients can be found in pre-packaged foods. These account for spiralling levels of obesity as well as preventable non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and some cancers which kill up to 43% of people.2
Makoma Bopape, senior lecturer at the University of Limpopo’s Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, is part of a team that completed a study on the efficacy of front-of-package labels in parental food purchasing. Bopape says the research3 indicates that children in both urban and rural settings are the most vulnerable consumers of ultra-processed foods.
These children – and their parents – are also the targets of aggressive advertising campaigns by large food companies which mislead people into believing that products such as fruit juices, yoghurt and breakfast cereals are healthy, when they are often laced with sugar, salt and processed carbohydrates.
Bopape says: “Increasing childhood obesity and poor eating habits have resulted in children as young as 12 being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and related lifestyle diseases. Ultimately, poor eating is not only endangering the physical health of the younger generation but also impacting on their mental health as overweight children tend to become isolated and depressed.”
She says that, while research showed that poor buying choices were also the result of lack of nutritional knowledge amongst parents and caregivers who were the main decision makers when purchasing food for children, even consumers who were aware of nutrition-related issues quickly became discouraged when attempting to read food labels. 3
“People cannot make sense of what all of those numbers on food labels represent. We also found that a lot of people do not read labels because of lack of time. The ingredient list is long and few people can go through each and every item, so they end up looking for just one or two specific ingredients,” says Bopape.
The end result is that, even though the nutrition information is there, it just becomes part of the packaging, serving no purpose at all.
Mbalati says: “Amazingly, even tobacco smokers know more about what they are purchasing and why they are endangering their health because regulations have been put in place and there are clear warnings on the front of cigarette packets. We feel that there is enough evidence to link poor diet with obesity and non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and some cancers, which is why we need foods that cross the threshold of safety to carry warnings, now.”
HEALA’s decision to ramp up its campaign this year is in line with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendations that governments must legislate the use of easy-to-understand nutrition labels so that consumers think twice before placing foods that are high in sugar, salt or saturated fat in their shopping baskets.3
Front-of-package label regulations have already been implemented in at least 10 countries, including Argentina, Mexico and Chile.4
Bopape and her fellow researchers have put forward an example of a suitable front-of-package label which was central to discussions with parents in the province of Limpopo during their research process. This provides sufficient information for parents to rethink a buying decision during the 10 seconds that it takes the average purchaser to select an item and place it in a trolley.
“We encourage all South Africans to carefully consider the contents of the food they are eating and giving to their children, particularly processed, packaged foods. We also invite the public to join the #whatsinourfood campaign and demand to know what’s in their food,” says Mbalati
For more information, visit www.whatsinourfood.org.za to get more information on how you can be a part of the cause, or add your voice by sending a WhatsApp to: 079 751 9751.
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Cape Town, October 22: Patterns of food consumption have changed rapidly in recent decades. The impact of the modern diet, and specifically high-energy foods, on human health has led to serious ailments. Our modern diet is characterised by high intakes of pre-packaged foods, refined grains, processed meat, high-sugar drinks, sweets, fried food and high-fat dairy products.
We haven’t always eaten this way. Our grandparents were more in tune with nature, ate fewer processed foods, and cooked vegetables and fruits that grew in their backyard. The kitchen was the heart of the house. They didn’t have to make conscious efforts to eat healthy foods – it was a way of life for them which contributed to their good health and longevity.
To shine a light on how improving our health and wellness starts with nutritious diets, advocacy group Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA), hosted an interactive cooking session with celebrity chef, Zola Nene, on 26 October at Food Jams in Cape Town, as part of its recently launched, national #whatsinourfood campaign which urges South Africans to take a stand against unhealthy food.
Nzama Mbalati, Programme Manager at HEALA, says: “We need to return to real, well-grown, unprocessed food – fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, seafood, and pasture raised animal products.”
Chef Nene agrees. She stresses the importance of cooking with fresh, colourful, seasonal vegetables; grass-fed protein; grains and ripe fruits and berries. Says Nene: “Eating seasonally and sourcing ingredients within close proximity to you helps ensure that you’re eating the freshest produce. Good food starts with a foundation of great ingredients, so knowing where your food comes from is just as important as the way you cook and prepare it. The idea of eating seven colours is not only nostalgic and representative of the family-style meals that South Africans love to eat, but it also ensures that you are consuming a variety of nutrients and vitamins by eating a broad spectrum of colours in your food.”
According to the World Health Organisation, worldwide obesity has nearly tripled since 19751. In 2016, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight.1 Of these over 650 million were obese1. Obesity increases the risk of several debilitating, and deadly diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, cancers and more, all of which have seen a profound increase over the years.
“Eating real, whole food is often a question of accessibility,” says Mbalati. “What choice do you have when you can’t afford healthy food? In addition, the food and beverage companies unfairly and disproportionately target unhealthy products at low-income communities. Our communities should not be shamed for the choices they are forced to make. Instead, the important driver of long-term change will be for us all to demand policy changes from government that will make healthier food and beverages more affordable.”
Mbalati stresses that consumers are being influenced by an industry that is only seeking profits. “Food companies are a major driver for the rising burden of nutrition-related chronic diseases. Parents and children are the targets of aggressive advertising campaigns which mislead people into believing that products such as fruit juices, yoghurt and breakfast cereals are healthy, when they often contain harmful ingredients. We need to change our perceptions of these products and fight for our right to access healthy food, more easily.”
The #whatsinourfood campaign calls on government to demand that food and beverage companies put clear front-of-package (FoPL) labels on food items high in fat, sugar and salt so that we can make better choices about what we consume.
Promising policy proposals like the World Heart Federation’s Front-Of-Package Policy Brief presents a concise summary that helps readers understand and make informed decisions about food choices.2 It gives an objective summary of the research, suggests possible policy options and argues for courses of action that governments should take when considering FoPL systems as part of a larger package of policies to create healthy, empowering food environments in their country.
Locally, Treasury introduced the Health Promotion Levy (HPL) on sugary drinks in 2018. Colloquially known as the “sugar tax”, it is charged on non-alcoholic sugary beverages, except fruit juices, and works out to about 10%-11% per litre of the sugary drink3.
“We are advocating for policy changes that will empower consumers and afford them agency in how they choose food and beverage products,” says Mbalati. “We need to return to our grandparents’ ways of eating if we want to live longer, healthier and happier lives. That is why we are inviting the public to join the #whatsinourfood campaign,” says Mbalati.
Visit: www.whatsinourfood.org.za to get more information on how you can be a part of the cause, or add your voice by sending a WhatsApp to: 079 751 9751.
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