Recommendations for Responsible Food Marketing to Children

The marketing of unhealthy foods to children and youth is a major public health concern. Children in the United States grow up surrounded by food and beverage marketing, which primarily promotes products with excessive amounts of added sugar, salt, and fat, and inadequate amounts of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. This document provides a comprehensive set of model definitions for food marketing practices directed to children. The recommendations, developed by a national panel of experts convened by Healthy Eating Research, define the child audience range as birth to 14 years of age; address the range of food marketing practices aimed at children; and specify the strategies, techniques, media platforms, and venues used to target children. When paired with sound nutrition criteria, these recommendations will help support responsible food marketing to children by addressing current loopholes in food marketing definitions and self-regulatory efforts that allow companies to market unhealthy foods and beverages to children

Linear programming can help identify practical solutions to improve the nutritional quality of food aid.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the nutritional quality of food aid delivered by food banks in France and to identify practical modifications to improve it. DESIGN: National-level data were collected for all food aid distributed by French food banks in 2004, and its nutrient content per 2000 kcal was estimated and compared with French recommendations for adults. Starting with the actual donation and allowing new foods into the food aid donation, linear programming was used to identify the minimum changes required in the actual donation to achieve the French recommendations. RESULTS: French food-bank-delivered food aid does not achieve the French recommendations for dietary fibre, ascorbic acid, vitamin D, folate, magnesium, docosahexaenoic acid, alpha-linolenic acid and the percentage of energy from saturated fatty acids. Linear programming analysis showed that these recommendations are achievable if more fruits, vegetables, legumes and fish were collected and less cheese, refined cereals and foods rich in fat, sugar and/or salt. In addition, new foods not previously collected are needed, particularly nuts, wholemeal bread and rapeseed oil. These changes increased the total edible weight (42%) and economic value (55%) of the food aid donation, with one-third of its edible weight coming from fruits and vegetables, one-third from staples, one-quarter from dairy products and approximately a tenth from meat/fish/eggs. CONCLUSIONS: Important changes in the types and amounts of food collected will improve the nutritional quality of food-bank-delivered food aid in France. Such changes are recommended to improve the diets of deprived French populations

Food Environments Near Home and School Related to Consumption of Soda and Fast Food

Outlines how retail food environments affect adolescents' consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and fast food, including county-by-county variations. Discusses implications for health outcomes and policy recommendations improve food environments

Factors that Impact Access to Quality Food in the Inner City

Food insecurity is an issue that disproportionately affects inner city communities. While food insecurity focuses more on the individual level, food deserts affect the community on a societal level. Food insecurity is an issue of public health significance because it affects food environments and has negative consequences on those living in food insecure communities. This review discusses factors that impact access to quality food in inner city communities such as lack of grocery stores, school environments and food affordability and how these factors can lead to an inadequate food supply, poor nutrition, obesity and chronic diseases. Food insecurity often results in an increase in food related health risks such as malnutrition, obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease among other things which can ultimately result in death. Food affordability, knowledge of school environments and supermarket politics regarding negative outcomes of food insecurity are highlighted. Recommendations are provided to address ways that inner city communities can have better access to nutritional food. These recommendations include mobilizing the community via the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) strategic approach, food labeling and diversifying neighborhood income

A Dietary Assessment of the U.S. Food Supply: Comparing Per Capita Food Consumption with Food Guide Pyramid Serving Recommendations

Most American diets do not meet Federal Food Guide Pyramid dietary recommendations. On average, people consume too many servings of added fats and sugars and too few servings of fruits, vegetables, dairy products, lean meats, and foods made from whole grains compared with a reference set of Food Guide Pyramid serving recommendations appropriate to the age and gender composition of the U.S. population. In addition, while the healthfulness of diets has improved over time, the pace of improvement has been uneven. For example, while Americans consumed record amounts of fruits and vegetables in 1996, consumption of caloric sweeteners also reached a 27-year high. This report is the first dietary assessment to use ERSís time-series food supply data to compare average diets with Federal dietary recommendations depicted in the Food Guide Pyramid. Food Guide Pyramid servings were estimated for more than 250 agricultural commodities for 1970-96. New techniques were developed to adjust the data for food spoilage and other losses accumulated throughout the marketing system and the home.food, food consumption, CSFII, Food Guide Pyramid, Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Food Security and Poverty,

Food Access in Petersburg, Virginia: Final Report and Recommendations

The City of Petersburg has long suffered with issues of limited access to food and food insecurity. Food deserts, or areas underserved by retail food options, are prevalent throughout the City. As a result, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has ranked the city last of Virginia\u27s 133 counties in their annual health rankings. For the Fall 2019 semester, students from Virginia Commonwealth University\u27s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, through Dr. John Accordino\u27s Urban Commercial Revitalization course, focused on planning solutions to address food deserts in commercial areas, with the City of Petersburg being one of their clients. The class assessed the potential for commercial revitalization and made five recommendations

Staphylococcus food poisoning: recommendations for its prevention and control

Mr. Dewberry, a Fellow of the Society of Health and of the Institute of Public Health and Hygiene, served with The historic Mediterranean Fever Commission in Malta in 1904-05 and may be the last survivor of that celebrated group. In this article he puts forward several recommendations for the prevention and control of staphylococcus food poisoning. Staphylococcus bacterium is commonly found in nature and the organisms are widespread among healthy persons, being present on the skin, in the throat and in the nasal passages. In the majority of the outbreaks occurring in England and Wales due to the enterotoxin, the incriminated vehicle has been a protein foodstuff (meat), which has been cooked the day previous to its being consumed. There appears to be only one effective way of controlling this type of food poisoning and that is to prevent pathogenic staphylococci from producing the enterotoxin in cooked protein foods. In this regard, guidance in treating stored food, including the maximum temperatures at which to keep cold or hot cooked protein foods is provided. In essence, since enterotoxin is odourless, colourless and tasteless, one cannot depend on the appearance, taste or smell of cooked protein food.peer-reviewe

San Francisco Disaster Food System Report

This analysis includes recommendations to advance food resiliency for low-income and vulnerable populations in the event of disaster. The report highlights the fragility of the disaster food pipeline in San Francisco, focuses on lessons learned from other disasters, and suggests opportunities for philanthropy to shore up the disaster food system

Feeding Ourselves Thirsty: How the Food Sector is Managing Global Water Risks

The global food sector faces extraordinary risks from the twin challenges of water scarcity and water pollution. Growing competition for water, combined with weak regulations, failing infrastructure, pollution and climate change impacts threaten the sector's water security and contribute to a water availability emergency that was recently ranked the world's "top global risk" by the World Economic Forum.This report examines how water risks affect the profitability and competitive positioning of 37 major food sector companies in four industries: packaged food, beverage, meat and agricultural products. It evaluates and ranks these companies -- the majority of which are U.S. domiciled and publicly-traded -- on how well they are positioned to anticipate and mitigate these risks, as well as contribute to improved water resource management.The report provides recommendations for how analysts and investors can effectively evaluate food sector companies on their water risk exposure and management practices. It also provides recommendations for how food companies can improve water efficiency and water quality across their operations and supply chains to reduce risks and protect water resources

Practical application of Emotional Freedom Techniques for food cravings

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) has been shown to have a lasting effect on food cravings, power over food and restraint ability, and ultimately results in weight loss. This paper discusses the approach utilised in a recent food craving clinical treatment trial (Stapleton, Sheldon, & Porter, 2012; Stapleton, Sheldon, Porter, & Whitty, 2011), and highlights the case of a single participant. Sessions are described in detail and specific recommendations are made for the application of EFT to food cravings in overweight and obese individuals.Full Tex