Civil Society calls for eliminating deadly industrially produced trans fatty acids
Islamabad: August 20, 2024: Today, in a joint statement leading civil society organizations of Pakistan have urged the government to take urgent policy measures to eliminate deadly industrially produced trans fatty acids (ITFA) from all sources of the food supply chain. This was said during the media session hosted by the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) in a local hotel in Islamabad. The event provided journalists and media professionals with comprehensive insights into the challenges associated with the presence of ITFAs in the diet.
“Cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and stroke are the major killers of Pakistanis. Every single day delay in adopting WHO recommended best practice policy in eliminating ITFA from the diet means more people are dying due to this deadly substance lurking in our food supply” said Mukhtar Ahmed Ali, Executive Director, CPDI. “Pakistan is among the top consumers of ITFAs in the region due to the absence of a comprehensive policy unlike other countries in the region” he added.
Partially Hydrogenated oils (PHO) are the major source of ITFAs and every single food where these oils are used contains these deadly substances in the diet. “Limiting iTFAs from all dietary sources to no more than 2 percent of total fats through a single regulation and imposing a ban on PHOs is the right approach for Pakistan to address this concerning situation,” said Munawar Hussain, Country Lead Pakistan at Global Health Advocacy Incubator.
Recent studies and market analysis of our food sources have highlighted the urgent need for measures to mitigate the adverse effects of these substances, which are commonly found in processed food items.
“In a recent research conducted by Heartfile and Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research 2/3rd of the brands tested claimed virtually trans fats free were having a high amount of iTFAs. In addition, tea whiteners, shortenings, street foods, fried items, and bakery items are among the major sources of iTFAs in the food supply chain,” said Dr. Saba Amjad, Chief Executive Officer of Heartfile.
A large number of leading journalists and representatives from civil society organizations attended the event. During the session, Pakistan’s health statistics, key gaps in food-related policies, and best practices from the region and other countries were discussed. The civil society organizations expressed their concern over the grave situation of rising diabetes and cardiovascular diseases in the country. They highlighted that the government needs to take policy measures by declaring a public health emergency to advance policies like regulating iTFAs from all dietary sources, imposing a ban on PHOs, enacting front-of-pack nutrition labeling and warning signs on ultra-processed foods, and removing unhealthy foods from public institutions.
