Hyderabad : The Indian Council of Medical Research–National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN)-led Let’s Fix Our Food (LFOF) Consortium on Wednesday released a set of policy priorities aimed at promoting healthier diets and improving food environments for children and adolescents across India. Policy roadmap targets healthier food environments The document, Priority Policy Actions to Promote Healthier […]<![CDATA[
Hyderabad : The Indian Council of Medical Research–National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN)-led Let’s Fix Our Food (LFOF) Consortium on Wednesday released a set of policy priorities aimed at promoting healthier diets and improving food environments for children and adolescents across India.
Policy roadmap targets healthier food environments
The document, Priority Policy Actions to Promote Healthier Diets and Food Environments for Children and Adolescents in India, was launched by Dr M. Srinivas, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, during the LFOF Dissemination and Consultation Workshop at the India Habitat Centre.
The event was attended by Dr Bharati Kulkarni, Director, ICMR-NIN, Prof. K. Srinath Reddy, Founder President of the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), senior officials from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), UNICEF India, Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL), researchers, development partners and youth representatives.
The consortium, led by ICMR-NIN, includes national and international organisations such as UNICEF India, World Health Organization (WHO), Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), World Food Programme (WFP), Institute of Economic Growth (IEG), International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Deakin University and several others.
Recommendations based on three years of research
The publication brings together findings from nearly three years of multidisciplinary research, stakeholder consultations and policy discussions. It recommends evidence-based measures covering healthy school food environments, nutrition literacy, front-of-pack nutrition labelling, regulation of marketing unhealthy foods to children, taxation of foods high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS), healthier dietary fats, salt reduction, low-sodium salt substitutes, social and behaviour change communication, youth engagement and fiscal measures to encourage healthier diets.
Dr M. Srinivas said evidence-based and multisectoral policy action was essential to create healthier food environments for children and adolescents. He said collaborative initiatives such as the Let’s Fix Our Food Consortium would help address the growing burden of overweight, obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases in India.
Dr Bharati Kulkarni said ICMR-NIN remained committed to generating quality evidence and building partnerships that translate research into public health action. She said the recommendations reflected the collective efforts of researchers, policymakers, development partners and young people working towards healthier food environments for future generations.
Prof. K. Srinath Reddy called for comprehensive policy interventions addressing the commercial, social and environmental factors contributing to unhealthy diets. He stressed the need for sustained measures to protect children and adolescents from obesogenic food environments.
Workshop launches nutrition tools and educational resources
The workshop also launched the Let’s Fix Our Food website, the Nutrition Environment Assessment Toolkit for Schools (NEAT-S) and its report, an e-learning module on understanding food labels, and ICMR-NIN educational resources on fats, sugars and salt to improve nutrition literacy among children and adolescents.
Marie-Claude Desilets, Chief of Nutrition, UNICEF India, said malnutrition was no longer limited to undernutrition and that rising obesity driven by unhealthy diets posed a challenge to healthy growth among children and adolescents. She said the policy briefs and the NEAT-S toolkit would support healthier school food environments.
Dr Syed Imran Farooq, Executive Director of Resolve to Save Lives India, highlighted the need to reduce excess consumption of salt, fat and sugar through supportive food policies to lower the burden of cardiovascular diseases and other health risks. He reaffirmed the organisation’s support for the consortium’s efforts.
The consultation also presented new research on school food environments, unhealthy food marketing, nutrition education, dietary behaviour, fiscal policy options and nutrition environment assessments conducted across multiple states. Participants discussed ways to translate the findings into actionable policy measures.
The policy briefs are available on the Let’s Fix Our Food website.
]]>
