Freshfel Europe has called for a a more focused effort on promoting fresh fruits and vegetables as a means of lowering, and ultimately preventing, the number of non-communicable diseases in the European Union.
The group welcomed the World Health Organisation (WHO) Vienna Declaration on Nutrition and Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) in the context of Health 2020, which was launched on 5 July this year, which recognised the low intake of fresh produce as the main food-related risk factor in developing NCDs and stressed the need to focus efforts on driving fruit and vegetable consumption.
'The burden of diseases from inappropriate diets and physical inactivity in the WHO European region is exceptionally high,' Freshfel noted in a statement. 'There is slow progress in reducing the premature mortality and disease burden in many countries in the region. The positive contribution of fruit and vegetables is underestimated in current policies.'
In the Vienna Declaration, ministers of health and representatives of member states of the WHO stated that they would contribute significantly to the reduction of NCDs by addressing priority concerns, among which, low consumption of vegetables and fruits.
The Vienna Declaration also pointed out the need to create healthy food and drink environments, and to consider the use of economic tools and incentives to promote healthy eating, according to national context.
“While continued action to decrease the intake of certain nutrients is important, not enough efforts are being put in promoting the consumption of whole or minimally processed foods such as fruit and vegetables, rich in the nutrients that need to be encouraged,” said Philippe Binard, Freshfel general delegate.
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