On 14 April, IFBA co-chair Stephen Kehoe spoke at the annual IOM meeting of the Committee on Preventing the Global Epidemic of Cardiovascular Disease in Washington, DC. Appearing on a panel with a number of other stakeholders engaged in CVD prevention, Kehoe outlined the IFBA group’s five global commitments and their intended role in promoting healthier diets around the world, especially in developing countries. He underscored the measurement process which IFBA has put in place to ensure progress against the commitments is measured, and also the need to broaden the group’s membership to a wide range of food and beverage industry players. Kehoe also referred to the need to ensure private sector funding for health initiatives is used more productively, against scale projects which carry a broad consensus among the public health community. Finally, he called for more thought to be given to government-funded research into food innovation as a preventative measure against CVD.
About the IOM: The Institute of Medicine serves as a advisor to the USA to improve health. Established in 1979 under the Charter of the National Academy of Sciences, the IOM provides independant, objective, evidence-based advice to policymakers, health professionals, the private sector, and the public. For more information, http://www.iom.edu/
