Jamaica launches Nutrition Facts Panel media campaign

CMC (Jamaica) – The Ministry of Health and Wellness has launched the Nutrition Facts Panel Media Campaign, which is aimed at helping consumers make healthier food choices.

According to Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton, the campaign will assist persons to use the Nutrition Facts Panel on packaged foods, which provides information on serving sizes, recommended number of servings, calories, nutrients, and percentage of daily value for each nutrient in a serving.

He said it’s part of the Ministry’s efforts to reduce and eliminate the scourge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are the leading cause of death in Jamaica and across the globe.

Aspects of the campaign will entail radio and television advertisements, as well as engagement on social media and other digital marketing platforms.

Speaking at the launch on Wednesday, Tufton said that prevention and control are priority measures in addressing the prevalence of NCDs among Jamaicans.

Part of the measures, he noted, is ensuring that members of the public know what is in their food, so as to make informed choices to take care of their health.

“This is a great start that supports the other things that we are doing, like the school nutrition policy, the physical activity programme, and the elimination of trans-fats. We have to see it as all related and linked,” Dr. Tufton said, while urging food manufacturers to make nutritional facts information clear on their products.

During his Sectoral presentation in May, Tufton said that in the most recent mortality figures, which recorded 22,022 deaths from all causes, diabetes mellitus was the most frequent underlying cause of death at 13 per cent, followed by stroke at 11 per cent and hypertensive disease at eight per cent.

The Minister said that the prevalence of NCDs not only places considerable burden on the public health system but impacts business and productivity through workforce downtime.

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