WHO will be launching the second progress report on Global trans fat elimination 2020 at a virtual high-level event in collaboration with Resolve to Save Lives, an initiative of Vital Strategies.
While more than 3.2 billion people in 58 countries will be protected from trans-fat by next year—more than 100 countries still have this harmful compound in their food supply. Eliminating industrially produced trans-fat is more important than ever to save lives and prevent cardiovascular disease without burdening health systems.
This NCD Action Week, let’s start limiting trans-fat intake to less than 1% of total energy intake or less than 2.2 g/day with a 2,000-calorie diet.
👉We are what we eat – abolish trans-fats! #BeatNCDs https://t.co/ShHYoZaRnv
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) September 9, 2020
In 2018, WHO launched a global effort to eliminate industrially-produced trans-fat by 2023to save lives and improve the health and well-being of people to achieve healthier populations.
Good progress has been made, yet important disparities persist in policy coverage by regions and counties income levels but still, countries and regions should take actions to ban industrially-produced trans fats so they can improve their populations’ health and well-being and prevent premature deaths.
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Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is planning to come out with a regulation to reduce trans-fat content in food products having fats or oils to 2 per cent by 2022, its CEO Arun Singhal said on 26, August.
Currently, the FSSAI limits trans-fat content in fats and oils to 5 per cent. The notification to further reduce to 3 per cent by 2021 and 2 per cent by 2022 is still in the process.
The only condition we have put for processed food is that they should not be HFSS – High on Fat, Salt & Sugar. If they do not fall in this category, processed food can be fortified: Ms Inoshi Sharma, Director, @fssaiindia at #FICCIWebinar. pic.twitter.com/QZcEP2Er17
— FICCI (@ficci_india) September 3, 2020
Asserting that trans-fat is a “serious issue”, he said the industry should come forward for collaboration with the FSSAI to find ways to bring down the trans-fat content in foods and oils.
Consumption of industrially-produced trans fats is estimated to cause around 500,000 deaths per year due to coronary heart disease.
“In a time when the whole world is fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, we must make every effort to protect people’s health. That must include taking all steps possible to prevent non-communicable diseases that can make them more susceptible to the coronavirus, and cause premature death,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Our goal of eliminating trans fats by 2023 must not be delayed.”
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FSSAI Chairperson Rita Teaotia said, “Food safety risk management has become important as “managing and maintaining food systems have become very formidable and complex tasks” amid growing demand for healthy food, increasing population, man-made climate change, urbanisation and depleting natural resources and even the current Covid-19 pandemic.”
To ensure availability of pure and safe edible oils in the country, a Pan India survey is conducted by FSSAI covering samples from all metro cities to small districts and even difficult terrains including Ladakh, Daman & Diu and Andaman.@MoHFW_INDIA @MIB_India @PIB_India pic.twitter.com/67KaVHOgtS
— FSSAI (@fssaiindia) September 3, 2020
In this regard, FSSAI’s initiatives are the beginning and need to be taken seriously by all the stakeholders, she added.
WHO has partnered with Resolve to Save Lives on achieving the target of TFA elimination by 2023.
To achieve a world free of industrially-produced trans-fat by 2023, WHO recommends countries:
- Develop and implement best-practice policies to set limits for industrially produced trans-fat or to ban PHO.
- Invest in monitoring mechanisms, e.g. lab capacity to assess and monitor trans-fat in foods.
- Advocate for regional or sub-regional regulations to expand the benefits of trans fat policies, where appropriate.
In its report, the WHO also gives detailed step-by-step implementation modules for the REPLACE action package, which give countries exact guidance on how to cut industrially produced trans-fat from their foods and save lives.