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Position
Access to adequate, acceptable and healthy nutrition and physical activity is essential to the healthy growth and development of children and plays an important role in the prevention of disease in later life. The government of Ontario must recognize its role in providing supports for healthy eating as well as promoting physical activity in schools and in the home. Strategies to ensure access to a healthy and adequate diet for all Ontarians as well as to address the specific issue of the alarming rise in obesity must be developed.
(Please visit the Social and Economic Determinants of Health page for advocacy related to barriers to accessing nutritious food)
ACTIVE RESOLUTIONS
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Resolution
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Recent Developments
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A09-1 Ban on Advertising to Children Under 13 Years of Age
THAT the Association of Local Public Health Agencies also support the broader goal of the Ontario Public Health Association and other organizations that are advocating for a ban on all commercial advertising targeted to children under 13 years of age.
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January 4 2010
Response from Heritage Minister outlining the current regulatory regime governing advertising standards. Please click here to read.
November 13 2009
Letter written to Canadian Heritage Minister (Responsible for the Broadcasting Act and the CRTC) introducing alPHa's position on prohibiting commercial advertising to children. Please click here to read.
November 10 2009
alPHa has received a response from the Minister of Industry. Please click here to read.
August 4 2009
alPHa has written to the federal Ministers of Health and of Industry, as well as the provincial Minister of Consumer Services to introduce this resolution, along with Resolution A08-13 calling for a specific ban on commercial marketing of food and beverages to children less than 13 years of age. Please click here to read.
September 10 2009
Reply received from the Minister of Consumer Services. Please click here to read.
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A09-4 - Trans Fat in the Food Supply
THAT the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alPHa) urge the Federal Minister of Health to take immediate steps to amend the Food and Drug Act or regulations to restrict the levels of synthetic trans fat permitted in foods to the limits recommended by the Federal Trans Fat Task Force (2006);
AND FURTHER that alPHa urge the Government of Ontario to take immediate steps towards regulating trans fat levels in foods and beverages available in Ontario food premises, including, but not limited to, supporting Bill 156 Healthy Decisions for Healthy Foods
AND FURTHER that alPHa urge the Government of Ontario to, in keeping with recent measures taken by the Government of British Columbia, take immediate steps towards regulating trans fat levels in foods and beverages available in Ontario foodservice operations;
AND FURTHER that alPHa urge the Government of Ontario to expand the trans fat regulations of Bill 8 Healthy Foods for Healthy Schools to include all foods available or provided (not just sold) by Ontario schools;
AND FURTHER that alPHa urge Ontario boards of health and municipalities to consider taking actions to regulate trans fat served in local food premises such as has been done in the cities of Calgary, Montreal and Toronto;
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February 26 2010
Response received from Health Canada to the August letter. Health Canada's approach to addressing trans fat in the food supply continues to rely on voluntary compliance and monitoring. Please click here to read.
August 10 2009
Letter written to the federal Minister of Health to inform her of this Resolution and its call for immediate regulation of trans-fats in Canada's food supply. Please click here to read.
August 10 2009
Letter written to the Ontario Ministers of Health and Education introducing the Resolution and urging them to take action at the provincial level to reduce trans-fats in the food supply and exposure to them. Please click here to read.
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A08 - 13 Ban on Commercial Advertising of Food and Beverages to Children Under the Age of 13
THAT the Association of Local Public Health Agencies call for a ban on all commercial advertising of food and beverages targeted to children under 13 years of age by the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada;
AND FURTHER THAT the Association of Local Public Health Agencies partner with the Ontario Public Health Association, Toronto Public Health and other interested stakeholders to develop and implement an effective province-wide advocacy plan.
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November 13 2009
Letter written to Canadian Heritage Minister (Responsible for the Broadcasting Act and the CRTC) introducing alPHa's position on prohibiting commercial advertising to children. Please click here to read.
November 10 2009
alPHa has received a response from the Minister of Industry. Please click here to read.
September 10 2009
Reply received from the Minister of Consumer Services. Please click here to read.
August 4 2009
alPHa has written to the federal Ministers of Health and of Industry, as well as the provincial Minister of Consumer Services to introduce this resolution, along with Resolution A09-1 calling for a general ban on marketing to children less than 13 years of age. Please click here to read.
February 5 2009
As part of its annual winter meeting, alPHa held a panel discussion on advertising to children in order to inform next steps for advocating on this resolution. Notes and presentations on the discussion are available in the Proceedings Package. Please click to read. http://www.alphaweb.org/docs/lib_011530149.pdf
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A07-2, Childhood Obesity and Trans Fats
THAT alPHa urges the government of Canada to respond to “Healthy Weights for Healthy Kids” and the Trans Fat Task Force reports and implement their recommendations as quickly as possible
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June 15 2009
alPHa has passed a new resolution on this subject, which urges more specific action on mandating the removal of trans fat from the food supply. Please click here to read.
April 30, 2009
alPHa has written a letter to the Premier in support of Bill 156 - Please click here to read.
March 10 2009
MPP France Gelinas has introduced PM Bill 156, Healthy Decsions for Healthy Eating, which would amend the HPPA to require certain food premises to disclose nutritional information and to limit the amount of trans fat in their products according to the recommendations of the Trans Fat Task Force report. Please click here for more information.
April 28 2008
Healthy Food for Healthy Schools Act receives Royal Assent, amending the Education Act. Ontario Regulation 200/08 specifies the maximum percentages of trans fat in food / ingredients offered for sale in schools.
March 5 2008
Reply received from Minister of Education to the January 2008 letter. Please click here to read.
February 6 2008
Reply received from federal Minister of Health. Please click here to read
January 2007
Letter written to Education Minister Kathleen Wynne expressing support for Bill 8, Healthy Food for Healthy Schools, and referring to this resolution.
Please click here to read.
December 2007
Health Canada has released the first set of semi-annual results from its Trans Fat Monitoring Program, which show that progress has been made in voluntary reductions of trans fats in selected products. The report is available here:
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/nutrition/gras-trans-fats/tfa-age_tc-tm_e.html
October 31, 2007
Letter written to the Federal Minister of Health. Please click here to read.
June 20, 2007
Health Minister Tony Clement has announced that he will give the food industry two years to voluntarily limit the proportion of trans-fats to 2% of the total fat content of vegetable oils and margarines and 5% for all other foods. If this is not achieved voluntarily, he has pledged regulation. Please click here to read the government press release.
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CLOSED RESOLUTIONS
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REASON FOR CLOSURE
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#A05-8, Healthy Weights
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT aIPHa urges the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, the Minister of Health Promotion and the Chief Medical Officer of Health to act immediately to develop specific, objectives, goals and targets based on the recommendations of Healthy Weights, Healthy Lives and to implement a healthy weights action plan to meet them, ideally as an integral component of a pan-Canadian healthy living strategy, to advance the recommendations of "Healthy Weights, Healthy Lives"
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June 20, 2006
Ontario government unveiled Ontario’s Action Plan for Healthy Eating and Active Living and a $10 million investment this year that builds on the province’s existing prevention programs. Please click here for more information. alPHa is represented on the Advisory Committee on Healthy Eating and Active Living.
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#A04-6, Childhood Obesity
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alPHa) urges the Chief Medical Officer of Health to review and make recommendations on childhood obesity in the next annual report; AND FURTHER that alPHa urges the Government of Ontario to strike an expert panel to study childhood obesity and to recommend an Ontario obesity strategy.
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January 18th 2005
This Resolution was closed, but the Advocacy Committee agreed that healthy weights would remain a top priority. To read the archived history of this resolution click here.
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NOTES:
March 27, 2007
The federal Standing Committee on Health has tabled a report in the House of Commons entitled Healthy Weights for Healthy Kids, which calls for
- A comprehensive public awareness campaign
- Mandatory, standardized, simple front of package labelling
- The removal of trans fats from the Canadian diet, replaced with an alternative low in saturated fat
The report can be downloaded here
February 19, 2007
The Federal Government has relaunched ParticipACTION. Please click here for the press release
October 26, 2006:
The Federal Minister of Finance has received the Report of the Expert Panel for the Children's Fitness, which makes recommendations on a tax credit system to cover eligible fees up to $500 for enrolment in a physical activity program, to facilitate access by children and youth to physical activity and recreation programs, as a means of helping them maintain a healthy active lifestyle.
October 2003
alPHa has endorsed Canada's Physical Activity Guides, which can be downloaded from the Public Health Agency of Canada's Web site.
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