Caribbean News
JAMAICA: Heart Foundation calls for Front-of-Package Labeling
#Kingston, November 22, 2019 – Jamaica – The Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ), through its Global Health Advocacy Project (GHAP), is calling for front-of-package labeling on food packages, which will provide consumers with information to make healthier food choices.
Speaking at a JIS Think Tank on Wednesday (November 19), HFJ’s GHAP Advocacy Officer, Vonetta Nurse, said the move is in keeping with the entity’s continued efforts to fight obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
“In Jamaica, the nutrition-facts panel on our products is not mandatory for all food items, so you’ll find that some products don’t have the label. There are also difficulties understanding the label in its current form, so what we are calling for is simple labelling on the front of food packages to allow consumers to know what is in the food,” she said.
“In this campaign, our messages are clear; give us the facts. Important information about the food should be placed on the package in a way that is easy for consumers to understand giving them opportunities to make healthier choices,” she added.
CARICOM leaders, at the 39th Conference of Heads of Government in Jamaica in July 2018, endorsed front-of-package labelling as a priority area in the fight against NCDs.
A number of member states are revising the 2010 CARICOM Regional Standard for Specification for labelling of pre-packaged foods (CRS 5:2010). The process is being led locally by the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ).
Representative of the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality (CROSQ), which is the regional standards development body,Cheryl Lewis, said that the ‘High in’ model is being considered, which makes it easy for the average consumer to be able to interpret the information on the product label.
“So even a small child with limited reading skills can understand that the product is not good for them by simply being able to recognise black octagons on the label with words such as ‘High in Sugar’ or ‘High in Sodium’,” she explained.
In addition to front-of-package labelling, the HFJ has recommended a raft of policy measures to address obesity and NCDs. These include taxes on unhealthy foods, implementation of an improved School Nutrition Policy, health promotion, and steps to address marketing of unhealthy foods to children.
Contact: Peta-Gay Hodges
Release: JIS
Photo Caption: Advocacy Officer for the Heart Foundation of Jamaica’s (HFJ) Global Health Advocacy Project. Vonetta Nurse, addresses a JIS think Tank on Wednesday (November 20).
Photo Cardit: Mark Bell
KINGSTON, April 29 (JIS):
Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Senator the Hon. Matthew Samuda, says the outcome of discussions arising from the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) will assist in guiding the Government’s planning for climate change.
This, he points out, is important for climate mitigation as well as building Jamaica’s resilience.
“We look forward to the discussions that will, no doubt, take place. We look forward to the basis of planning for the Government to streamline its investments to ensure you have the tools that you need to better advise us, that the WRA (Water Resources Authority) has the tools to digitise its monitoring network, and that all of the agencies that touch our planning mechanisms have the tools. But we need to know what we are facing, and we’re guided by your expertise,” Minister Samuda said.
He was addressing the opening ceremony for the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in New Kingston on Monday (April 29).
Senator Samuda said given the fact that the climate has changed and continues to do so, investments in and collaborations on building Jamaica’s predictive and scientific capacity must be prioritised.
“Ultimately, we need to be able to assess our current climatic realities if we are to better plan, if we’re to insist and ensure that our infrastructure meets the needs that we need it to. I’m very happy that this event is happening… because this is a critical issue.
“Jamaica, last year, faced its worst and most severe drought… and this year, we’re already seeing the impacts of not quite as severe a drought but, certainly, a drought with severe impacts, especially in the western part of the country,” he said.
Principal Director, Meteorological Service of Jamaica, Evan Thompson, explained that the forum aims to, among other things, establish a collaboration platform for climate services providers and users to understand risks and opportunities of past, present and future climate developments, as well as improve inter-agency coordination of policies, plans and programmes.
Among the other presenters were Ambassador, European Union to Jamaica, Her Excellency Marianne Van Steen; Chief Scientist/Climatologist, Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, Adrian Trotman; and Head, Regional Climate Prediction Services, World Meteorological Organization, Wilfran Moufouma-Okia.
The Meteorological Service of Jamaica hosted the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) in partnership with the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology and the World Meteorological Organization.
The National Stakeholder Consultation is a governance mechanism that guides how different sectors or actors work together to create products that contribute to adaptation and resilience-building. It seeks to create a road map for the development and implementation of climate services to inform decision-making.
NCF-1 aims to bridge the gap between climate providers and users. It increases the use of science-based information in decision-making and operations with the aim of generating and delivering co-produced and co-designed products and services.
CONTACT: CHRIS PATTERSON
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