On the occasion of World Obesity Day this Monday, Regional Nutrition Officer Israel Rios told Prensa Latina that the projects aim to rescue eating habits and stimulate family farming in rural and indigenous communities.

Likewise, he stressed, it is important that legal regulations are definitely established to support those purposes, including the one related to front labels on the products that are on sale in the market network.

Since January 2020, a commission of the National Assembly (Parliament) has been debating Bill 265, on the so-called front-of-package nutritional warnings.

About this issue, Rios described as cardinal the initiative presented to the legislature by organizations such as the Healthy Food Movement, the Panamanian Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians, and the Healthy Panama Foundation, among others.

This measure seeks that buyers are informed, as there are strong marketing campaigns promoting pre-packaged food and sugar-sweetened beverages, especially aimed at children, at a time when overweight and obesity are reaching record figures in Panama.

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