Cadbury Nigeria Plc on Thursday announced the launch of a healthy lifestyle programme aimed at bringing nutrition education, active play and fresh foods to at-risk children and their families in Nigeria.
The firm said it was joining nine other countries in the Mondelez International family in this initiative, which would involve $50m a-year commitment to promote healthy lifestyles and address obesity.
The United Kingdom on Friday became the latest country to join a growing list of countries that have enacted ‘sugar tax’ laws on sweetened beverages as a way to fight obesity among children which is the leading cause of cardiovascular diseases later in life such as hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes among others.
The UK is said to have the highest level of obesity in Western Europe.
South Africa’s proposal to tax sugar sweetened beverages which was first announced in 2016 finally came into effect on Sunday 1st April 2018.
The new sugar tax called the ‘Sugary Beverages Levy” and a part of the “Health Promotion Levy” is set at 2.1 cents per gram of sugar content that exceeds 4g per 100ml. According to the new law, the first 4g per 100ml are levy free.
“Sugar” refers to intrinsic and added sugar and other sweetening matter. However, fruit juice is exempt.
