The government is banking on a raft of public policy changes in its fight against non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and obesity, including a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and an upcoming ban on industrially produced trans fats, a forum revealed Thursday.
With lifestyle diseases accounting for nearly 80 per cent of deaths in the region, the government said it is addressing the root causes of unhealthy diets and lifestyles, particularly among children.
The policy measures were revealed during a forum, A Conversation on the Right to Health and the Right to Adequate and Nutritious Foods, held in observance of World Food Day on Wednesday. Organised by the Law and Health Research Unit at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill, the Ministry of Health, and the National Non-Communicable Disease Commission, the event brought together health officials, legal experts, economists, and representatives from international organisations such as the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).
In addition to the school nutrition policy, the government introduced a 20 per cent tax on sugar-sweetened beverages to curb the consumption of sugary drinks, a major contributor to obesity and diabetes.
Senior Medical Officer of Health, Dr Arthur Phillips, speaking on the success of the tax, said: “The tax did or was associated with… a decrease in the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, [and] an increase in the consumption of water.”
However, he acknowledged that more can be done.
Barbados is now looking to refine its tax structure to further incentivise healthier choices.
“Taxes influence consumption, and this one has worked,” Dr Phillips added.
Another significant initiative is the planned ban on industrially produced trans fats, which are known to increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The government is committed to enacting this ban by the end of 2025.
“Industrially produced trans fats significantly increase the risk of negative cardiovascular outcomes,” said Dr Phillips. “We’re working closely with food producers, and we are fortunate in that our major importers, producers, and processors are on board.”
While these policies represent important strides, affordability remains a key challenge. Economist Dr Antonio Alleyne highlighted the issue of high prices for healthy foods, which are often more expensive than ultra-processed alternatives.
“If you look at the taxation when it comes to healthy items compared to unhealthy items, it actually is much higher,” he explained. “With the advent or the advancement of technology, it allows us to produce more ultra-processed foods at a faster pace and at a cheaper pace.”
Dr Alleyne called for a balanced approach to addressing this disparity, suggesting a combination of taxation and other measures to make healthier foods more affordable.
“Unhealthy versus healthy prices are a very big issue…. What was proposed was we take that revenue loss [from reducing taxes on healthy foods] and implement it on the unhealthy items,” he suggested.
Nicole Foster, a lecturer in global health law at UWI, underscored the state’s legal obligation to ensure access to healthy food for its citizens.
“For every human right, there are three basic obligations that the state assumes: an obligation to respect that right, an obligation to protect that right, and an obligation to fulfil that right,” she said.
Foster also highlighted the government’s duty to regulate third-party actions that could harm public health: “Where third parties, including private actors, are carrying out activities which undermine the respective right, it is the obligation of the state to take action to rectify that.”
She further emphasised that while progress may take time, it is crucial to continue moving towards the goal of improving public health.
