Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq refused to accept a proposed federal-provincial sodium-reduction plan that highlighted regulations and the independent monitoring of the food industry to reduce the amount of sodium in processed foods.
The plan, prepared by federal and provincial health officials and obtained exclusively by Postmedia News, was set to be released along-side a joint childhood obesity report last month at the health ministers' meeting in Halifax.
But when Aglukkaq refused to endorse the sodium report, it had to be withdrawn, though the provinces still plan to reach an agreement among themselves on its measures.
Ottawa will not be a partner to the plan.
"This is an unfortunate and significant change," a senior health official familiar with discussions at the health ministers' meeting told Postmedia News.
"One can speculate about why the federal government would not agree to releasing the report - especially after originally agreeing to partner on reducing sodium consumption in Canada - but the consensus opinion is that the federal government is not willing to regulate or take a strong approach with the food industry. You can see the report from the joint sodium working group recommends just that," the senior official said.
The joint report reiterates the commitment made by the provincial, territorial and federal health ministers at their 2010 meeting to reduce the average daily sodium intake of Canadians by about a third by 2016.
The target to reduce daily intake from 3,400 milligrams to 2,300 mg was proposed by Health Canada's Sodium Working Group earlier in 2010.
The shelved report, dated November 2011 and titled Reducing the Sodium Intake of Canadians: Federal, Provincial and Territorial Actions Taken and Future Directions, also draws heavily from key pillars of the Sodium Working Group to reach the goal.
"With approximately 77 per cent of Canadians' dietary sodium coming from commercially prepared foods, much of the effort to lower sodium intake must focus on the food sup-ply. Key components for lowering sodium in the food supply include a structured voluntary approach, and selected regulatory and policy changes," the report states.
Origin
Source: Edmonton Journal
The plan, prepared by federal and provincial health officials and obtained exclusively by Postmedia News, was set to be released along-side a joint childhood obesity report last month at the health ministers' meeting in Halifax.
But when Aglukkaq refused to endorse the sodium report, it had to be withdrawn, though the provinces still plan to reach an agreement among themselves on its measures.
Ottawa will not be a partner to the plan.
"This is an unfortunate and significant change," a senior health official familiar with discussions at the health ministers' meeting told Postmedia News.
"One can speculate about why the federal government would not agree to releasing the report - especially after originally agreeing to partner on reducing sodium consumption in Canada - but the consensus opinion is that the federal government is not willing to regulate or take a strong approach with the food industry. You can see the report from the joint sodium working group recommends just that," the senior official said.
The joint report reiterates the commitment made by the provincial, territorial and federal health ministers at their 2010 meeting to reduce the average daily sodium intake of Canadians by about a third by 2016.
The target to reduce daily intake from 3,400 milligrams to 2,300 mg was proposed by Health Canada's Sodium Working Group earlier in 2010.
The shelved report, dated November 2011 and titled Reducing the Sodium Intake of Canadians: Federal, Provincial and Territorial Actions Taken and Future Directions, also draws heavily from key pillars of the Sodium Working Group to reach the goal.
"With approximately 77 per cent of Canadians' dietary sodium coming from commercially prepared foods, much of the effort to lower sodium intake must focus on the food sup-ply. Key components for lowering sodium in the food supply include a structured voluntary approach, and selected regulatory and policy changes," the report states.
Origin
Source: Edmonton Journal
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