Groups Launch National Initiative to Fight Obesity
More than 40 retailers, non-governmental organizations, and food and beverage manufacturers have launched a national initiative to reduce obesity in the United States by 2015, especially among children. The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation aims to provide tools to help people achieve healthy weights through “energy balance—calories in balance with calories out” in three areas where they spend the most time: the marketplace, workplace and schools.
Founding members have committed $20 million to the endeavor, which will be independently monitored by organizations that will produce public reports about their findings. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) will monitor the marketplace component; the National Business Group on Health will assess workplace efforts; and the Center for Weight and Health at the University of California, Berkeley will audit schools.
“If current trends continue, today’s young people may be the first generation in American history to live sicker and die younger than their parents’ generation,” the president and chief executive officer of the RWJF was quoted as saying. “That’s simply unacceptable. But the food and beverage manufacturers and retailers who are part of this effort are uniquely positioned to help restore energy balance in children’s lives by reducing the excess calories they consume.”
Inaugural foundation partners include the American Council on Fitness & Nutrition Foundation, the American Dietetic Association Foundation, Girl Scouts of the USA, the National Wildlife Federation, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. See Robert Wood Johnson Foundation website; FoodNavigator-USA.com, October 5, 2009.
