Amid fears that enforcing regulation on junk foods will lead to closure of corporations, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has insisted that no media or corporate organisation would go under, even if “junks disappear from our plates.”
 
The media survive, mainly, through advertisements and patronage, which sometimes come from multinational corporations, including those producing harmful substances, such as tobacco, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and abnormally salted foods.
 
Speaking yesterday, during the media presentation and launch of ‘Junk on Our Plates: Exposing Deceptive Marketing of Unhealthy Foods Across Seven States in Nigeria’ at CAPPA’s office in Lagos.
 
Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, who spoke, yesterday, during the media presentation and launch of ‘Junk on Our Plates: Exposing Deceptive Marketing of Unhealthy Foods Across Seven States in Nigeria’ at CAPPA’s office in Lagos, said that no media organisation had ever gone under because it did not advertise for junk food producers.
 
Akinbode cited the stoppage of British American Tobacco (BAT), which seemed to have had no negative effect on the media in terms of advertisements. He said: “When we were campaigning to stop tobacco advertisements, the media told us ‘they pay our bills.’ Have the media collapsed after the stoppage? What we are saying is that there should be regulation.
 
“These companies disclose only the good contents of the products. But we are saying that there must be full disclosure. If you advertise that your product has Vitamin C, also disclose that it contains a high percentage of sugar and salt.”
 
In his opening speech, the CAPPA boss said the campaign was to improve public health and protect the right of every Nigerian to safe, nutritious and affordable food.
 
“The Nigerian diet is changing rapidly, and not for the better. More and more, our diets are made up of highly processed, sugar-heavy and nutrient-poor products, while traditional meals that offer better nutrition are being pushed to the margins. This shift hasn’t come without consequences. We are dealing with illnesses and non-communicable diseases that were once considered ‘oyinbo sickness’. Obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases now rank among the leading causes of death in the country. Together, they account for more than 30 per cent of all deaths in Nigeria yearly, and the numbers are still rising.
 
“But we cannot talk about this health crisis without naming its drivers. The connection between the rise of these diseases and the growing consumption of unhealthy foods and drinks is not lost. The food environment plays a major role. It determines what people have access to, what they can afford, and what they consume. From the producers of sugary drinks to the manufacturers of ultra-processed foods and snacks, these companies influence not just what we eat, but how we eat, and tragically, how many of us fall ill or die.”
 
CAPPA acknowledged some bold steps taken by the Federal Government and active governments across the world to confront this challenge.