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Now More Than Ever Regional Campaign Promoting Front-of-Package Warning Labelling

The Campaign at a Glance

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The Campaign at a Glance

The “Now More than Ever: Better Labels, Better Choices, Better Health” campaign originally launched in March 2021, by the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC) in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), UNICEF and the OECS Commission will run again from Monday February 13 2023, for three weeks. The regional campaign will raise awareness about the impact of childhood overweight and obesity and the regional NCD epidemic, while promoting children’s right to nutritious foods and mobilising public and policymaker support for the adoption of the octagon shaped warning labels on the front of packaged foods as the best way to help Caribbean citizens identify products that are high in sugars, fats and salt.

The multimedia campaign originally ran from March 12 until April 30, 2021, across social media, digital media and radio platforms in CARICOM Member States, and is part of wider regional multisectoral, multistakeholder advocacy and communication efforts to promote healthy food environments.

Campaign Metrics

Campaign Webinar
The webinar, A Conversation About the Urgency to Introduce Front-of-Package Warning Labeling in the Caribbean, laid out the public health arguments for the octagonal ‘High In’ model and the PAHO Nutrient Profile model. Experts from regional public health institutions, academia and civil society presented compelling evidence on the urgency to seize this unique opportunity to introduce octagonal warning labels as a key policy tool of a comprehensive approach to address NCDs, overweight and obesity, that will help Caribbean people make healthier choices for better health. Attended by over 350 persons, this webinar took place on Wednesday April 7 and was hosted by the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC), in partnership with the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission and UNICEF as part of the regional campaign “Now More Than Ever: Better Labels, Better Choices, Better Health”, which seeks to raise awareness of children’s right to nutritious food and mobilize public and policymaker support for adopting octagonal warning labels on the front of packaged products to facilitate healthier food decisions. Read more

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What Is the Campaign Trying To Achieve?

Using a rights-based approach, this regional communication and awareness campaign aims to contribute to the creation of healthier food environments for Caribbean people including children and young people by building support for the accelerated implementation of mandatory front-of-package octagonal warning labelling.

More specifically, the objectives campaign are:

To increase public and policymaker awareness about the urgent situation of childhood overweight and obesity and diet-related NCDs in the Caribbean using a rights-based approach.
To increase awareness of parents, guardians, children and young people of the importance of healthy nutrition for children and young people to combat childhood overweight and obesity, using a rights-based approach.
To increase public and policymaker knowledge about front-of-package warning labels as a rights-based tool to regulate obesogenic environments and tackle childhood overweight and obesity and NCDs in the Caribbean.
To increase public and policymaker support and demand for the accelerated implementation of the CARICOM FOPWL standard in the Caribbean, using a rights-based approach.

Who Are We Targeting?

This campaign is focused on the following audiences:.

Parents, guardians, children and young people, to promote the importance of healthy eating habits/good nutrition, the appreciation of the rights of children to access nutritious food and the importance of FOPWL as part of a comprehensive strategy to facilitate that right.
Policymakers (including key decision-makers), to build awareness and support for accelerated policy implementation and inclusion of priority nutrition policies in COVID-19 recovery planning.

Campaign Resources