The Global Health Advocacy Incubator’s advocacy experience and treasure trove of connections can serve as a real asset to health programs anywhere. Take our work on trans fats, for instance.
The World Health Organization has called for artificial trans fats to be cut from the global food supply by 2023. It would be the first time a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases – the world’s leading cause of death – is eliminated. India is key to this process, as more than one in five of these deaths occur here.
The Global Health Advocacy Incubator is supporting a variety of efforts to reduce trans fats consumption around the world. In India, we are helping government regulators to make the case for limiting artificial trans fats to 2 percent of total fat content in all foods and to strengthen food labeling rules.
On food labeling, in particular, we were able to draw on another project of ours, which is focused on obesity prevention. The insights and connections gleaned from that project allowed us to swiftly put together a coalition of health and nutrition experts to advise the Indian government on food labeling. In a 2018 letter to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, the coalition – led by the internationally renowned nutrition expert Dr. Barry M. Popkin – showcased ways to empower consumers through improved nutrition facts panels and front-of-package warning labels on packaged foods containing high amounts of trans fats and other potentially harmful components.
The letter generated significant media coverage and prompted government regulators to take a closer look at international best practices before finalizing labeling rules. The Global Health Advocacy Incubator continues to support efforts by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and its allies to achieve excellence in the formulation of food safety standards based on modern science and to regulate the food sector in a responsive, efficient and effective manner.
August 20, 2026
When the FIFA World Cup kicked off in June 2026, so did one of the largest ultra-processed product (UPP) marketing pushes in the sport's history. All over the world, UPP companies, such as Coca-Cola, Lays and Pepsico, spent months embedding their products into the emotional core of the world's most-watched sporting event, reaching billions of fans.
August 14, 2026
July 27, 2026
The FIFA World Cup is more than a football tournament; it stirs passion and captures the attention of billions worldwide, making it one of the most powerful commercial platforms on earth. Global brands compete to associate their products with the excitement and sense of belonging the sport inspires. But when that marketing targets children and adolescents, boundaries of advertising should be drawn.
