Omo, dis CAPPA people no dey play o! Dem don yan say Nigeria need serious law for sugar-sweetened drinks and all dem ultra-processed foods wey children dey chop. Dis matter wey dem talk be like warning bell for public health, especially as festive period dey approach.
As dem don drop their report for Lagos, CAPPA Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, talk say festive periods dey turn to proper battleground for aggressive food ads wey fit spoil pikin dem health. Dem sabi say, ‘Nigeria must act decisively to regulate its food environment in the public interest.’ Na true talk, no be so dem suppose dey do am.
Dem report, wey dem call ‘Unhealthy Food Hijack of Festive Periods in Nigeria’, shine light on how big food companies dey use Christmas and New Year to bombard pipo with sweet sweet adverts wey just dey persuade people make dem chop sugar and salt-loaded foods. E no good o!
As we sabi, sugar-dense food dey carry plenty sugar, but e no get beta things like fiber or vitamins. Na only sweet sweet energy dem dey provide, and na wetin dey cause wahala for body. Ultra-processed food sef na another story, because dem dey full with all those chemical things wey no dey beneficial to body.
Akinbode don make am clear, na dem festive times dem dey use to boost brand visibility and sell these unhealthy products as if na di main thing wey go make us happy during celebration. Meanwhile, dem dey target children, low-income families dey expose dem to all those comments wey fit cause sickness when dem chop am finish.
Dis CAPPA report come show say pikin dem dey constantly dey see dis kind adverts for malls, religious centres and social media. “Dey dey use Santa imagery and events to sell these things, and na kids dey most affected,” Oluwafemi talk.
Na di serious matter be say, dis sweet marketing dey increase health issues like diabetes and hypertension wey don dey cause wahala for many families. E mean say we really need to sit down, look the issues and find better solutions before e turn gbege for our health systems.
CAPPA no just stop there, dem propose plenty solutions wey dem feel say fit help. Dem dey talk about beta regulations, like sugar tax wey supposed dey 50% of wetin pipo dey buy. Dem want make dem put clear labels for food wey get plenty sugar; no more overload adverts for low-income areas, and ban dish influencer marketing for children.
For Nigeria wey dey already struggle with non-communicable diseases, na dis festive marketing dey push the matter make e worse. CAPPA dey craze on dis matter, call for laws wey go ensure say dis adverts no go dey happen anyhow.
As e stand now, dem dey monitor all dis advertising activities, but na still early for the companies to respond to wetin CAPPA don talk. But we dey hope say dis report go make our lawmakers sharp up and put public health first, especially for di pikin dem.
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