1 vote

Big food versus the people

1 comment

  1. post_below
    Link
    [...] Similar to the story of big tobacco, oil, healthcare (in the US) and pretty much every other mature industry with enough money to influence the system.

    Bad diets kill millions of people globally every year, and lead to tens of billions of dollars in health costs, often placing the heaviest burden on communities who are least able to afford it. Children, with limited decision-making power, are particularly vulnerable to this.

    Legislators and government officials have worked to rein in this public health crisis by enacting laws that require food companies to be transparent about their ingredients and limit the advertising of unhealthy foods.

    In public, the world’s biggest and richest food companies such as Coca Cola, PepsiCola, and Mondelez say they want to be part of the solution. But behind closed doors, they have taken governments to court to delay, dilute, and derail public health laws, which the companies say violate their rights.

    [...]

    Of the cases brought by private companies where the plaintiff was identifiable, more than 1 in 3 came from just nine parent groups, led by Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Mondelez

    Their actions are not only prolonging the public health crisis but also cost countries billions of dollars in both legal and healthcare costs. In addition, they have a chilling effect on policymakers that wish to better their citizens’ health but do not have the resources to engage in drawn-out legal fights with food companies.

    Similar to the story of big tobacco, oil, healthcare (in the US) and pretty much every other mature industry with enough money to influence the system.