New Zealand leaves Australia in the dust when it comes to sugar reduction efforts.
It may be the country behind lolly cake, pineapple lumps and Goody Goody Gum Drops ice-cream, but there’s no doubt Aotearoa leads the way in their health advocacy.
And it’s little wonder – almost one-third of NZ adults are obese, and one-fifth of kids are overweight. With similar stats Down Under, here are five awesome health initiatives Australia needs to take notice of.
1. Soft drinks BANNED in hospitals.
Every single District Health Board in New Zealand has banned the sales of sugar-sweetened drinks in hospitals. Three of these boards have also banned diet soda, as well as limiting the serving sizes of smoothies and juices. Amazing stuff!
Hospitals aren’t the only places to ban the pop. This year’s Waitangi Day celebrations at the Treaty Grounds were also completely “fizzy-free”.
“Obesity is particularly prevalent in Māori and Pasifika communities, so we are happy to do anything we can to get the message out that sugary drinks are a big contributor to obesity,” says Waitangi National Trust CEO, Greg McManus.
2. Sugar-free schools.
This makes us so, so happy. With up to 29,000 Kiwi kids having teeth pulled each year, Yendarra School adopted a water-only policy in 2007. Extractions caused by decay have since HALVED.
This amazing example is spreading nationwide. Eltham School also has a water-only policy, which is helped by their local dairy agreeing not to sell sugary drinks to kids in the mornings.
“We teach our children to make responsible healthy eating choices and therefore we have to model it,” says Eltham School principal, Kathryn Pick.
3. Labels and logos.
Consumer NZ is campaigning for added sugar to be penalised in the Health Star Rating system (oh, we hear you). According to their survey, 71 per cent of people wanted BOTH total and added sugars labelled.
In the meantime, health advocacy group FIZZ (who want zero consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages by 2025!) have created their own “no sugary drinks logo” for schools, businesses and public spaces to voluntarily display. Wahoo!
4. Radical reformulation.
Retail giants including and PAK’nSAVE have all pledged to reformulate their privately owned brands where possible, promising to cut sugar and salt content by 10 per cent in total.
Plus, Fonterra New Zealand has slashed the sugar in kids’ yoghurt brand Uno by 40 per cent. Perhaps they’re getting ready for a sugar tax?
5. Sugar tax support.
Speaking of which! Support for a sugar tax in New Zealand is steadily growing, with 52 per cent of Kiwis surveyed agreeing to the tax.
The New Zealand Medical Association has also thrown its hat in, calling for a 20 per cent tax on sugary drinks. Looks like this might be another thing New Zealand beats us to!
Which initiative would you like to see implemented in Australia?
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