Experts want stricter food labeling measures

Experts have called on government to put in place strong measures that will regulate companies in labeling food products with clear and prominent health warnings for the consumers.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) kill 41 million people each year, accounting for 74 percent of all deaths globally.

The global health body further shows that each year, more than 15 million people die from NCDs between the ages of 30 and 69 years; 85 percent of these “premature” deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries mainly due to deceptive labeling of products.

Bernard Bwambale, the head of programmes at Global Consumer Center explains that government should consider regulatory measures, including fiscal interventions that will help promote healthy diets using a human rights-based approach in the country.

“By law, all packaged food products are supposed to be labeled. One of the elements that we expect on the products should be the name of the product. We are also supposed to have nutrition information,” he said.

Food labels are essential for consumers to understand the nutritional content of food products, including vitamins, minerals, calories, and fats.

Written by Barbra Anyait