Choices organises symposium in the Czech Republic

December 21th, 2012

On 26 September 2012, Vím, co jím - (Choices in the Czech Republic) organised a professional symposium dedicated to the theme of How to produce and sell healthy food products.

Among the symposium’s 70 participants were food producers, importers, retail chains, caterers and representatives from national and university institutes. Together they looked at what can be done to educate consumers on quality of food in the Czech Republic.

Currently, when shopping for regular food products, most consumers receive a lot of information that they are – for the most part – unable to understand. This could be improved through education, which could begin in elementary school.

Another problem is that the food industry suffers from a stringent regulatory environment, which ultimately has an impact on the type and quality of the information provided to consumers. “Self-regulation and solutions that make information more understandable for consumers would be beneficial” said Pavel Teclička, Chairman of the Choices International Foundation during his speech. He also underlined that due to a lack of public discussion within the food in industry in the Czech Republic, regulations are often put forward without any prior impact studies. This issue could be solved though discussion between industry and public authorities.

As the only guide for helping Czech consumers select food based on sound nutritional criteria, the Choices logo was presented as a way of helping consumers to select food that is truly healthier. Over the last year, several manufacturers have joined Vím, co jím, thus strengthening its product offering.