• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

McD's & PepsiCo to help write health policy

Tedminator

Member
Joined
May 31, 2010
Messages
190
Reaction score
99
Location
South Florida
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Undisclosed
McDonald's and PepsiCo to help write UK health policy | The Guardian
Friday 12 November 2010
Department of Health putting fast food companies at heart of policy on obesity, alcohol and diet-related disease

The Department of Health is putting the fast food companies McDonald's and KFC and processed food and drink manufacturers such as PepsiCo, Kellogg's, Unilever, Mars and Diageo at the heart of writing government policy on obesity, alcohol and diet-related disease, the Guardian has learned. In an overhaul of public health, said by campaign groups to be the equivalent of handing smoking policy over to the tobacco industry, health secretary Andrew Lansley has set up five "responsibility deal" networks with business, co-chaired by ministers, to come up with policies. Some of these are expected to be used in the public health white paper due in the next month.

The groups are dominated by food and alcohol industry members, who have been invited to suggest measures to tackle public health crises. Working alongside them are public interest health and consumer groups including Which?, Cancer Research UK and the Faculty of Public Health. The alcohol responsibility deal network is chaired by the head of the lobby group the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. The food network to tackle diet and health problems includes processed food manufacturers, fast food companies, and Compass, the catering company famously pilloried by Jamie Oliver for its school menus of turkey twizzlers. The food deal's sub-group on calories is chaired by PepsiCo, owner of Walkers crisps. The leading supermarkets are an equally strong presence, while the responsibility deal's physical activity group is chaired by the Fitness Industry Association, which is the lobby group for private gyms and personal trainers.

..snips..

Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, the leading liver specialist and until recently president of the Royal College of Physicians, said he was very concerned by the emphasis on voluntary partnerships with industry. A member of the alcohol responsibility deal network, Gilmore said he had decided to co-operate, but he doubted whether there could be "a meaningful convergence between the interests of industry and public health since the priority of the drinks industry was to make money for shareholders while public health demanded a cut in consumption".
---more--------------------------


Mmmm nom nom nom I wonder how this will work out.

I do have a suggestion tho; Gordon Ramsey w/ a tv crew should be part of these policy meetings... that should be entertaining.
 
McDonald's and PepsiCo to help write UK health policy | The Guardian
Friday 12 November 2010
Department of Health putting fast food companies at heart of policy on obesity, alcohol and diet-related disease

The Department of Health is putting the fast food companies McDonald's and KFC and processed food and drink manufacturers such as PepsiCo, Kellogg's, Unilever, Mars and Diageo at the heart of writing government policy on obesity, alcohol and diet-related disease, the Guardian has learned. In an overhaul of public health, said by campaign groups to be the equivalent of handing smoking policy over to the tobacco industry, health secretary Andrew Lansley has set up five "responsibility deal" networks with business, co-chaired by ministers, to come up with policies. Some of these are expected to be used in the public health white paper due in the next month.

The groups are dominated by food and alcohol industry members, who have been invited to suggest measures to tackle public health crises. Working alongside them are public interest health and consumer groups including Which?, Cancer Research UK and the Faculty of Public Health. The alcohol responsibility deal network is chaired by the head of the lobby group the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. The food network to tackle diet and health problems includes processed food manufacturers, fast food companies, and Compass, the catering company famously pilloried by Jamie Oliver for its school menus of turkey twizzlers. The food deal's sub-group on calories is chaired by PepsiCo, owner of Walkers crisps. The leading supermarkets are an equally strong presence, while the responsibility deal's physical activity group is chaired by the Fitness Industry Association, which is the lobby group for private gyms and personal trainers.

..snips..

Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, the leading liver specialist and until recently president of the Royal College of Physicians, said he was very concerned by the emphasis on voluntary partnerships with industry. A member of the alcohol responsibility deal network, Gilmore said he had decided to co-operate, but he doubted whether there could be "a meaningful convergence between the interests of industry and public health since the priority of the drinks industry was to make money for shareholders while public health demanded a cut in consumption".
---more--------------------------


Mmmm nom nom nom I wonder how this will work out.

I do have a suggestion tho; Gordon Ramsey w/ a tv crew should be part of these policy meetings... that should be entertaining.

Good. Lay's, Coke, Pepsi, Pizza Hut, Phillip Morris and whoever is the largest wine, beer and spirits distributor in the country should be on the panel.

What business is it of the state what people eat? Oh... that's right... they have to control costs.

They should save the taxpayers money and eliminate the Dept. of Health.

.
 
someone again remind me why we have a Department of Health?
 
Hopefully we'll see the same here. I could use a prescription-strength McRib right now.
 
So that bottle of aspirin is actually aspirin and not suger pills or rat poison.

I take a drug that is also a main ingredient in rat poison daily. I'm pretty glad that it is regulated so that I get the proper dose and am not at risk of bleeding to death internally or the reverse and dieing from blood clots.
 
Im sorry, but what's the FDA's purpose again?

What We Do

The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.
The FDA is also responsible for advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective, safer, and more affordable; and helping the public get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medicines and foods to improve their health

What We Do
 
Good. Lay's, Coke, Pepsi, Pizza Hut, Phillip Morris and whoever is the largest wine, beer and spirits distributor in the country should be on the panel.

China is the largest country in the world. Does this mean they should automatically get a spot on the UN human rights commission?

The answer to both questions is largely the same. If an entity acts in opposition to the mission for which the agency was created, they should not get a spot. Those companies you cited make mostly crap.
 
Last edited:
People who take the libertarian stance against Dep't of Health/FDA are hilarious.

Elixir sulfanilamide - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In 1937, pharmaceutical company makes a medicine. Mixes it with diethylene glycol as a solvent.

DEG is lethal.

The chief chemist at the company was unaware of this, and he did not perform any safety testing. Because there wasn't a law that required it and there was no agency that would oversee such things. DEG's being poisonous was not some new development.

Company's liability?

They paid a small fine for labeling a product "elixer" when it contained no alcohol.

More than 100 people died.

This is not some freak, rare event. The free market can and will kill you to make or save a dollar. These government agencies mainly exist to make sure the population actually is properly informed about the actions of private businesses. (informed decisions being fundamental to the successful operation of a free market)
 
so why don't we just get rid of the department of health and just put a big ass FDA sign?

The FDA is part of the Department of Heath... At the risk of making you look ridiculous were you aware of that?
 
Back
Top Bottom