Time is running out for the World Health Organization to achieve its global initiative announced in 2018 to ban all trans fats by the end of 2023.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general, warned that many countries have not yet developed policies to eliminate the ubiquitous presence of trans fatty acids from processed food.
To date, more than 40 countries accounting for more than one-third of the world’s population had implemented one of WHO’s best-practice policies on trans fat.
According to the WHO, 500,000 deaths are caused annually by trans fats in common processed foods.
Ghebreyesus noted how early adopters of laws that ban trans fats, such as Denmark, have decreased the incidence of cardiovascular disease and fatal heart attacks significantly.
See Also:Europe Limits Use of Trans Fats in FoodsGhebreyesus referred to research recently published in Plos One, which found an 11-percent decrease in trans-fat-related mortality in Denmark from 1991 to 2007.
The WHO chief said trans fat could easily be replaced in baked foods, frying oils, fried foods and solid fats, including margarine and vegetable ghee.
Ghebreyesus added how high-oleic vegetable oils should be the primary alternative since they are “healthier, no more expensive and taste good too.”
In the WHO’s documents about replacing trans fat, the organizations’ authors listed vegetable oils such as canola and rapeseed among the main alternatives, followed by sunflower, corn and soybean.
They explained that other healthier oils, such as olive oil, are not considered on a global scale as efficient replacements as they “are not used extensively because of their limited availability and high cost.”
According to International Olive Council data, global olive oil production and consumption has reached about 3 million tons in the past few years. While these figures have tripled in the last six decades, they represent only a fraction of the global vegetable oils volumes.
Figures released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) show that global vegetable oil consumption reached almost 210 million tons and is projected to exceed 246 million tons by 2029.
According to WHO, more than 100 countries are still failing to remove or decrease trans fat in their food supplies. As a result, the WHO estimates that approximately five billion people are still exposed to the harmful effects of trans fats.
No progress has been made in some countries where trans-fat-induced cardiovascular disease is believed to hit the highest: Australia, Pakistan, Iran, Egypt, Azerbaijan, South Korea, Bhutan, Nepal and Ecuador.
The WHO has proposed two policy alternatives to its member countries. The first is focused on limiting trans fat to a maximum of two grams per 100 grams of total fats in food. The second is to ban the production or use of partially hydrogenated oils, considered the most relevant source of trans fat.
Ghebreyesus praised the 2019 decision by the United States Food and Drug Administration, which labeled trans fats as an excessive risk to human health, which created a de facto ban.
“To date, more than 40 countries accounting for more than one-third of the world’s population had implemented one of WHO’s best-practice policies on trans fat,” Ghebreyesus wrote.
“A further 17 countries, with an additional 400 million people, are using less restrictive policies but are still on a good path towards implementing WHO’s package of recommended best practices,” he added.
Among the progress being made, Ghebreyesus highlighted the commitment of the International Food and Beverage Alliance to eliminate trans fat from their members’ products – including The Coca-Cola Company, Unilever, Nestle, McDonald’s and Ferrero – by 2023.
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