Caribbean Mobilising to Eliminate Industrially Produced Trans Fats

by HCC

On Friday, 17 May 2024, the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC) and partners hosted a webinar entitled ‘Caribbean Mobilising to Eliminate Industrially Produced Trans Fats’, it convened key regional stakeholders to discuss the elimination of industrially produced trans fats (iTFAs) from the Caribbean food supply. iTFAs are a significant contributor to cardiovascular diseases, causing around 278,000 deaths globally each year.

In 2022, CARICOM member states committed to removing iTFA from the food supply by December 2025. Momentum is building across the region as countries begin work in this area with the support of key regional partners. Civil society has an important role to play in supporting these efforts.

Funded by a grant from Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL), HCC has undertaken an initiative which aims to support civil society advocacy and increase public and policymaker awareness for regulatory policies to eliminate partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) and limit iTFAs to no more than 2% of total fat in all food products. This webinar was a crucial step in building momentum and support for iTFA regulation across the region

Webinar Goal and Objectives

The goal of this webinar was to build regional support for the accelerated enactment of regulatory policies in CARICOM Member States to eliminate iTFA from the food supply.

The objectives of the webinar were to:

  • Sensitise HCC’s stakeholders about the HCC Civil Society iTFA Advocacy Project.
  • Build awareness about iTFAs, their associated health dangers and presence in the Caribbean food supply.
  • Showcase global best practices and lessons learned in iTFA regulation.
  • Build awareness of regulatory approaches and pathways for the elimination of iTFAs in CARICOM, and in doing so, highlight the feasibility of introducing iTFA regulation in the Caribbean.

Sponsors and Partners

This webinar was implemented with the support of RTSL, in partnership with CARICOM, the Caribbean Public Health Law Forum, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the OECS Commission, the Law and Health Research Unit (LHRU), the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Barbados (HSFB), Healthy Bahamas Coalition (HBC), Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ), Lake Health and Wellbeing and the St. Lucia Diabetes & Hypertension Association (SLDHA).

HCC iTFA Speaker Flyer

 

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