EPHA European Public Health Alliance

Overview of Advocacy and Information Exchange

commitments to the EU Platform Action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health

coherent EU policies supporting good nutrition and reducing health inequalities for all

10 June 2014

Dorota Sienkiewicz [Health Equity and Policy Coherence Coordinator]

Who we are

EPHA is a European platform of around 100 member organisations in Europe advocating for better health and reducing health inequalities. We represent public interest organisations – health professionals, patient organisations, disease-specific NGOs, academic groupings, at European, national, regional and local level.

What is our mission?

◦ To bring together the public health community to provide thought leadership and facilitate change.

◦ To build public health capacity to deliver equitable solutions to European public health challenges.

◦ To improve health and reduce health inequalities.

Why the commitments?

Public health problems due to poor diets and insufficient physical activity, with a strong social gradient resulting in vast, persistent and growing health inequalities starting early in life and mostly beyond control of

individual consumers => coordinated coherent multi-sector ambitious policies and actions needed, with a leadership, responsibility and

accountability in public interest domain

Our focus?

Poor diet-related Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs): cardiovascular disease, diabetes type-2, certain types of cancer, obesity and overweight (especially childhood obesity)

Food and nutritional poverty, vulnerable groups, access and right to food

Health-promoting built and social environments

Advertising and marketing (esp. children and vulnerable consumers), labelling and nutritional profile

Integrated food and agricultural policy

Fiscal measures, pricing, agricultural subsidies

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 1043: Networking and Information Exchange on Food and Nutrition (2008-2014)

Action no. 630: The link between the Common Agricultural Policy and Diet (2008-2014)

Action no. 1506: Monitor, encourage and support the implementation of the EU School Fruit Scheme (2013/2014) (joint action with Freshfel)

Action no. 1507: Analysis of the industry’s commitments to the Platform against public health objectives (2013/2014)

Action no. 1508: Monitor, encourage and support the implementation of the new Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (2013/2014)

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 1043: Networking and Information Exchange on European food, nutrition and physical activity developments with EPHA member organisations (2008-2014)

Target audience: health professionals across EU MS, various levels

It is intended that this commitment will allow EPHA to provide its members with up-to-date information on diet, nutrition and PA-related developments at European level. Both top-down, bottom-up and horizontal communication employed.

This is done through monthly Policy Coordination Meetings (PCMs), ad hoc working groups, social media, monthly newsletters, website, capacity building activities for our members.

EPHA convenes pre-Platform meetings with other Platform member NGOs to coordinate active participation.

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 630: The link between the Common Agricultural Policy and Diet (2008-2014)

Target audience: policy makers, various levels

EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has a crucial role to play in ensuring that consumers have access to a wide choice of nutritious foods for a balanced diet. Past but also current reform of the CAP are likely to contribute to significant public health problems as the policy does not sufficiently prioritise and financially support production of healthy crops such as fruit and vegetables (shortage and relatively expensive) but over supports others such as meat, sugar and dairy. It is intended that this commitment will deepen the common understanding of the link between CAP and diet among decision-makers, provide material to advocate for better policies at all levels.

This is done through monthly PCMs, ad hoc working groups, social media, monthly newsletters, website, capacity building activities for our members, joint letters and positions.

EPHA contribute to DGAgri AdvGroups on F&V and EU SFS, DGEntr Sherpa group on Better Functioning of a Food Supply Chain, DGEmpl Poverty Platform.

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 1506: Monitor, encourage and support the implementation of the EU School Fruit Scheme (2013/2014) (joint action with Freshfel)

Target audience: policy makers

Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption in Europe, especially among children, is an important strategy for (sustainably) improving diets and thus addressing the EU’s burden of diet-related diseases.

Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption requires addressing the availability and accessibility of healthy food options, and doing this effectively requires collaboration between the fruit and vegetable and public health sectors.

The commitment's relevance for the Platform lies in the unique collaboration developed within the framework of the Platform by public health civil society organisations (EPHA) and the fresh fruit and vegetable sector (Freshfel Europe). The commitment may lead to increasing public health nutrition considerations in DG AGRI and thus add to efforts to ‘obesity-proofing’ other policy areas.

The activities include involvement in the annual SFS evaluation process, discussions around the accompanying measures, monitoring the development of the new merger scheme.

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 1507: Analysis of the industry’s commitments to the Platform against public health objectives (2013/2014)

Target audience: policy makers

The Platform members have agreed to share with each other their action plans, setting out what they intend to achieve and by what means. From a public health community's perspective, however, some of the commitments submitted, implemented, monitored and evaluated by the economic operators member of the Platform do not clearly contribute to a meaningful and sustainable achievement of fundamental public health objectives of better health for all and reducing health inequalities - in particular those related to poor diets and nutrition.

In order to assess whether and to what degree the industry's commitments contribute to the achievement of the public health objectives and goals, an analysis aided by case studies will be carried out.

An analysis will address evidence base to aid public health-promoting policies, attempt to provide recommendations for quality and relevant commitments by the industry actors towards the Platform.

2014 Active commitments

Advocacy and Information exchange

Action no. 1508: Monitor, encourage and support the implementation of the new Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (2013/2014)

Target audience: policy makers

Diet-related health outcomes of the most deprived and disadvantaged groups in the European Union have been deteriorating and causing even greater health divide between the better- and worse-off, especially during the recent food crises, increase in food prices and the current economic crisis. In 2009 alone (pre-crisis levels), there were 43 million people in food poverty in the EU. Given that the official definition of this type of poverty frequently overlooks its nutritional security and quality, it is important to look into a degree healthy nutrition is taken into consideration when responding to food poverty at the EU level in a form of the new Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived.

Therefore, increasing healthy nutrition among European most disadvantaged population groups is an important strategy for improving diets and addressing the EU's burden of diet-related diseases, including obesity, CVDs, certain cancers and diabetes.

The commitment may lead to increasing public health nutrition considerations in DGEmpl and thus add to effort to "obesity-proofing" other policy areas (anti-poverty, social, family).

EPHA European Public Health Alliance

Rue de Trèves 49 – 51 Boite 6

BE - 1040 Brussels +32 (0) 2 233 3885

d.sienkiewicz@epha.org

www.epha.org