Clipping of news on Brazilian Culture, Law and Citizenship
04/30/2015
This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.
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Partnership between fruit and Mobilizer Idec Network, online activity discusses importance of labeling in promoting healthy eating
The bread is really full? Consuming a diet product to not get fat? How to tell if a food has too much sodium? These are some questions that consumers are made and for which the reading of food labels is an important ally. To discuss the issue, the Mobilizers Network in partnership with Idec will promote, 04-08 May, the free online workshop "Food Labelling", with facilitation Ana Paula Bortoletto, Nutritionist Idec, and Francine Lima, journalist and creator of the channel "From farm to fork." During the days of the workshop, participants will have access to an online area with material for study and consultation and may ask questions in the forum with the facilitators.
Understanding labels is crucial in order to make healthy food choices and appropriate to individual needs. A survey conducted by Idec with 807 adult women - of all income levels, ages 20 and 65 - revealed that most of the consumers do not understand the labels: 30% say they understand only partially, and 10% of them do not understand anything or very little. Nutritionists point out that the interpretation of the label is essential to promoting a healthy and adequate food and to address the increase in chronic diseases related to food in Brazil. According to the Risk and Protective Factors Surveillance for Chronic Diseases by Telephone Interviews (Vigitel) in 2013, 50.8% of Brazilians were overweight and of these, 17.5% are obese.
According to standards of ANVISA (National Health Surveillance Agency), and the list of ingredients, the label must indicate quantity, expiry date, nutritional information, preservation method (if frozen, for example), among other data. But beyond the comprehension of difficulty, experts point out various problems in relation to labels, as little attention to the nutritional information, the lack of mandatory indication of the presence of allergens, residues of pesticides or the amount of sugar present in food; the fact that the nutritional information refers only to the food portion and not the total package, among other factors.
Given this situation, the National Council for Food and Nutritional Security (CONSEA) recommended that the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) to give more attention to regulatory proposals for food labeling, to facilitate the understanding and the readability of information for consumers, and also combat the dissemination of misleading and abusive information. Anvisa then created a working group to subsidize it in technical or scientific issues and nutrition labeling.
During the workshop, and explain what should be on the label according to current legislation, the main problems identified by experts and possible solutions will be presented. It will be also encouraged a discussion among participants about their difficulties in relation to food labels. At the end of the activity, a letter with the main demands of the participants to be sent to Anvisa working group will be drafted.
Registrations
Registration for the workshop can be made from April 17 to May 1. To register, you need to be registered on the site Mobilizing Network. Register HERE. Once registered, please register on the workshop HERE.
More information on the site (www.mobilizadores.org.br) or by phone: 21 - 2528-3352.
Source: Idec
To access Idec site, click here.
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This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.