FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GMA Statement Regarding Recommendations from President's Childhood Obesity Task Force
Contact:
Scott Openshaw, Director, Communications, 202-295-3957
Brian Kennedy, Director, Communications, 202-639-5994
May 11, 2010
The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) today issued the following statement by President and CEO Pamela G. Bailey regarding the release of an action plan from the interagency Task Force on Childhood Obesity, commissioned by President Obama:
“America’s food and beverage companies are committed to a genuine partnership with First Lady Michelle Obama in her efforts to reverse the trend of childhood obesity within a generation. We agree that everyone has a role to play, including industry. We embrace our responsibility.
“We have improved the nutritional profile of more than 10,000 of our products to reduce sugar, fats, calories and sodium. We promise to continually improve. In the near future, many of our member companies, through their work with the Health Weight Commitment Foundation, will be announcing additional and measurable goals to reduce childhood obesity by providing even more healthy choices.
“And we’re not just making our foods healthier. More nutritional education is an essential key to healthy living. We’ve made a commitment to share more information about foods than ever before. We want consumers to feel confident in the choices they make to help their families build and maintain healthy lifestyles.
“Government also has an important role to play, and GMA supports legislative efforts to strengthen the Child Nutrition Act, including new strong, science-based nutritional standards for foods sold in schools. And just last week, we stood with Rep. Ron Kind to applaud his Healthy CHOICES Act which would adopt a multi-pronged approach to tackling obesity.
“Ending childhood obesity within a generation is a goal every American should embrace, and America’s food and beverage industry is proud to do its part.”
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Based in Washington, D.C., the Grocery Manufacturers Association is the voice of more than 300 leading food, beverage and consumer product companies that sustain and enhance the quality of life for hundreds of millions of people in the United States and around the globe. Founded in 1908, GMA is an active, vocal advocate for its member companies and a trusted source of information about the industry and the products consumers rely on and enjoy every day. The association and its member companies are committed to meeting the needs of consumers through product innovation, responsible business practices and effective public policy solutions developed through a genuine partnership with policymakers and other stakeholders. In keeping with its founding principles, GMA helps its members produce safe products through a strong and ongoing commitment to scientific research, testing and evaluation and to providing consumers with the products, tools and information they need to achieve a healthy diet and an active lifestyle. The food, beverage and consumer packaged goods industry in the United States generates sales of $2.1 trillion annually, employs 14 million workers and contributes $1 trillion in added value to the economy every year.
Related GMA Documents dealing with - OBESITY ISSUE
NEWS RELEASE
- August 30, 2010 Food and Beverage Companies Have Introduced More than 20,000
Healthier Product Choices Since 2002
- May 17, 2010 GMA Statement Regarding HWCF Pledge to Reduce 1.5 Trillion Calories by 2015
- May 11, 2010 GMA Statement Regarding Recommendations from President's Childhood Obesity Task Force
- May 5, 2010 GMA Applauds Rep. Ron Kind's Comprehensive Anti-Obesity Legislation
- March 16, 2010 First Lady Michelle Obama Addresses Grocery Manufacturers Association Science Forum - GMA Strongly Supports First Lady’s Goal of Solving Childhood Obesity within a Generation
- March 9, 2010 GMA: More Than Two-Thirds of the Advertisements Seen by Children and Teens Today Promote More Nutritious Foods and Healthy Lifestyles
- March 4, 2010 GMA Statement at House Agriculture Appropriations Hearing on the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act
- January 27, 2010 GMA Response to President Obama's State of the Union Address
- January 20, 2010 GMA Statement on First Lady Michelle Obama's Childhood Obesity Initiative
- December 16, 2009 Grocery Manufacturers Association Testifies before Congress in Hearing on “Innovations in Addressing Childhood Obesity”
- October 5, 2009 Retailers, NGOs and Food and Beverage Industry Launch National Initiative to Help Reduce Obesity
- September 17, 2009 GMA Applauds HHS Secretary Sebelius and HHS for New Community Prevention and Wellness Program
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