foodwatch on progress report on Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan (EBCP): “Commission has failed”

Today, European Parliament’s Committee on Public Health (SANT) discusses the progress report on Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan (EBCP). The 200+ pages report by the European Parliamentary Research Service notes progress but also clearly criticizes gaps and delays in implementing the plan and its impact on cancer inequalities. Suzy Sumner, Head of Brussels Office for foodwatch international says:

“The Commission has failed to take the measures needed in cancer prevention. The report clearly links poor diet to 13 types of cancer including colorectal, breast and liver cancers. Yet, the Commission has failed on the clear obligation to introduce a mandatory front-of-pack nutritional labelling. The failure to roll out a mandatory Nutri-Score across the EU 27 Member States is costing lives and the Commission needs to address it as a matter of urgency.

Obesity alone is directly responsible for more than 200,000 new cases of cancer per year in Europe, a figure that is expected to rise significantly in the coming decades, according to the World Health Organisation.

More and more countries are adopting Nutri-Score on a voluntary basis. The Commission needs to allow member states to make Nutri-Score mandatory and for the sake of a functioning Single Market, have one mandatory scheme for all. This is a harmonization which will actually benefit people’s lives.

We must not stop here: The Commission must also take action to address cancer risks linked to environmental factors such as air, water and soil pollution, as well as controversial additives and contaminants in our food. So far Europe's Beating Cancer Plan remains silent on what action to take.”

• full report: “Europe's Beating Cancer Plan – Implementation findings”