Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

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    • Non communicable diseases is a major global health risk. We need to recognize the fact that a family member cooks food for the well-being of the family while a business cooks food for the profit motive. This change in role of food preparation has huge implication on the health of the family and the society. In the process of food preparation the businesses resort to food design/formulation to tickle food consumption in humans. In the long run inducing food consumption through ajinomoto, saccharine, thickeners, flavor enhancers, glazing agents, coloring agents, quantity discounts, price offers etc result in overeating that causes obesity and other non communicable diseases. Children & young adolescent have very little ability to distinguish between the food consumption for hunger and the onsumption for the sake of consumption experience. An attachment to consumption experience is called addiction. Considering the wellbeing of the Children & young people, the relationship between food business and children should be well regulated to prevent food related health harm.

      See the attachments:

    • Foundations of tax policy:  Current health related food tax is a product of both medical science (Allopathy/western medicine) and economics. With obesity and other non-communicable diseases being one of the biggest market failure, there is an urgent need to look at healthy people like yoga (Indian medicine) practitioners for lessons in management of food consumption and for taxation.

      The Governments around the world have proposed to tax various food products to stop obesity, diabetes and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and they include soda tax, candy tax, sugar tax, high salt and high sugar tax, junk food tax, pastry tax, etc. Even after taxing food products there is still discussion on food supplied in large quantities, and on promotions to children in the form of gifts and toys. There is a need for comprehensive global framework for health related food taxation and it is addressed by the attached work.

       

      See the attachments:

      1. In India the new government worked to get global approval (W.H.O) of Yoga.  International yoga day was organized.  Efforts are on to implement Yoga in Indian schools.

      2. The international recognition of Yoga reinforced confidence in yoga teachers in India.   This has considerably reduced the marketing efforts required from yoga teachers.   The schools have become active in recruiting new yoga teachers.

      3.  We need a comprehensive understanding of overeating before starting the process of taxing food products.  I have prepared a comprehensive understanding of overeating.  The Governments around the world have proposed to tax various food products to stop obesity, diabetes & other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and they include soda tax, candy tax, sugar tax, high salt and high sugar tax, junk food tax, pastry tax, etc. Even after taxing food products there is still discussion on food supplied in large quantities, and on promotions to children in the form of gifts and toys. There is a need for comprehensive global framework for health related food taxation and it is addressed by my work. https://www.mygov.in/sites/default/files/user_comments/Efficient-Tax-Framework.pdf

        Behavioral insight: This effort has also brought out the business behavior of tickling food consumption in individuals. Markets mechanisms reward the business behavior tickling food consumption as higher sales translates into higher profits.  Governments in developed countries have set up a team to nudge people’s behavior for improving health especially in the area of obesity and non-communicable diseases.   The business behavior of tickling food consumption generates or increases the need for governance efforts like behavior change interventions, and regulating tickling behavior will reduce the burden of governance.

      The above framework will be a single basic document for Overeating behavior/Tax based financing for health/ Behavioral insight efforts.

      See the attachments:

    • Problem

      Excess Nutrition or Overeating leads to obesity and deterioration in human capital.

      Possible solution

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359699283489_63

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_17_1359723208382_72 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359731083202_73 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359798396236_74 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1360685305390_90 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_23_1360685305390_77 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1362361479203_74 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_21_1362361479203_75 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_24_1362361479203_64 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1365862779348_90 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_35_1371252607489_80 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_36_1371252607489_81 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_109_1373876958946_106 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_126_1373876958946_95 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_87_1374480923030_117 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_46_1374815663598_120 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_43_1374820859681_111 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_60_1374820859681_113 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_70_1375675444367_115 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_47_1377432779255_131 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_37_1377441760601_120 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_51_1377441760601_122">
      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_43_1374820859681_112 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_60_1374820859681_114 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_70_1375675444367_116 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_47_1377432779255_132 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_37_1377441760601_121 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_51_1377441760601_123">The basic fact is that intense practitioners of yoga consume food only once a day while moderate practitioners of yoga consume food twice a day. With the normal consumption being around three times on a given day, the economic benefit or the reduction in 
      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_19_1358954107096_63

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359699283489_64

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_17_1359723208382_73

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359731083202_74

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359798396236_75

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1360685305390_91

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_23_1360685305390_78

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1362361479203_75 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_21_1362361479203_76 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_24_1362361479203_65 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1365862779348_91 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_35_1371252607489_81 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_36_1371252607489_82 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_109_1373876958946_107 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_126_1373876958946_96 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_87_1374480923030_118 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_46_1374815663598_122 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_43_1374820859681_113 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_60_1374820859681_115 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_70_1375675444367_117 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_47_1377432779255_133 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_37_1377441760601_122 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_51_1377441760601_124" id="yiv3149635972lw_1358411063_0">food consumption
      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359699283489_65 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_17_1359723208382_74 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359731083202_75 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1359798396236_76 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1360685305390_92 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_23_1360685305390_79 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_20_1362361479203_76 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_21_1362361479203_77 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_24_1362361479203_66 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_18_1365862779348_92 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_35_1371252607489_82 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_36_1371252607489_83 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_109_1373876958946_108 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_126_1373876958946_97 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_87_1374480923030_119 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_46_1374815663598_123 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_43_1374820859681_114 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_60_1374820859681_116 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_70_1375675444367_118 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_47_1377432779255_134 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_37_1377441760601_123 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_51_1377441760601_125" id="yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_16_1358410633904_117"> due to yoga practice is two meals per person per day for intense practitioner and the same would be one meal per person per day for moderate practitioner. In addition, the economic benefit includes increase in well-being & consciousness, and decrease in cost of non-communicable diseases.

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_16_1362361479203_66

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_46_1374815663598_125

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_43_1374820859681_116

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_60_1374820859681_118 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_70_1375675444367_120 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_47_1377432779255_136 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_37_1377441760601_125 yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_51_1377441760601_127" id="yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_16_1362361479203_80">Thus yoga can be a mitigating factor for overeating that leads to obesity. Yoga is different from other physical activity as one has to reduce food consumption to progress in practice.   I have proposed that Yoga be recognised as Clean development mechanism for food energy.

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_16_1360751511147_59

      yiv3149635972yui_3_7_2_19_1360751511147_64

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      Policy Issues
      I have explained the policy issues in the attached document they include Simplification of food taxes globally and embedding physical activity in education.
       
      Programme Success - example America
      Percentage of Yoga practitioners in America has shot up to 8.7% of the total population by 2012.
      The savings in food consumption could be well over 1% of national food consumption together with phenomenal development in human capital.  This percentage of 8.7% in USA was achieved due to decades of hard work of yoga teachers while people in India have started undergoing bariatric surgery.
       
      Governance
      Recognition of Yoga as clean development mechanism is primary and we need to create corresponding governance frameworks similar to that of the frameworks we have for fossil fuels.
       
      Partnerships
      Partnerships are required at international and national level to embed best practice in education.   The Partnerships to be built could be similar to that of Michelle obama's promotion of physical activity in developing countries.  Such partnership are non existent in India which has the dual problem of malnutrition and obesity.
       
      See the attachments: