New rules drafted for packaged food

Almost all of the packaged food and drink sold in Kenya by local and international companies would require a health warning label under newly drafted government rules, according to an independent report shared with Reuters. Kenya released its nutrient profile model this month, and committed to using it to develop front-of-package labels, reports TimesLIVE. The report by the non-profit Access to Nutrition Initiative found that under those rules, 90% of products sold by both international companies like Coca-Cola and Nestle and local firms such as Brookside Dairy Ltd and Manji Foods Industries contained either too much salt, sugar or saturated fat. Neither the Kenyan Government nor the companies responded to requests for comment. ATNI has previously tracked products globally and in countries like the US and India, but the Kenya report, alongside one from Tanzania, is the first of its kind in an African country. The non-profit found last year that products sold by the world’s biggest food and drink companies in poorer countries were on average less healthy than those sold in richer countries. In Kenya, sales of processed packaged food grew by 16% in the five years to 2023, and adult obesity rates have tripled since 2000, with 45% of women and 19% of men now overweight or obese, the report said.

Full TimesLIVE report