Health advocates on Monday celebrated the start of the effectivity of the ban on industrially-produced trans fatty acids or iTFA in pre-packaged and processed foods in the country.

Public interest law group ImagineLaw urged solons anew to pass the Trans Fat Free Philippines Bill into law, a measure that will ban the use of industrially-produced trans fatty acids or iTFAs in processed and pre-packaged food products manufactured and sold in the country.

Public interest law group ImagineLaw on Monday urged national government agencies (NGAs) and local government units (LGUs) to opt for healthier alternatives in their food gifts and Christmas banquets for office parties and public gatherings this holiday season.

A group of doctors, lawyers and a lawmaker on Thursday expressed alarm over the rising incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) among younger Filipinos. In a press conference to commemorate World Heart Day, the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) said that Filipinos who suffer from stroke and other heart conditions are getting younger.

“Time’s up for trans fat.”

The Department of Health (DOH) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday reminded food companies to reformulate and remove industrially-produced trans fatty acids (iTFA) from their products by June 18, 2023, in compliance with DOH Administrative Order 2021-0039 and FDA Circular 2021-028.

“One year left. The food industry must ensure that the food they produce and offer for sale to the public is safe and trans fat-free.”

This is the statement of the law group ImagineLaw today, a year before the deadline for the food industry to remove their processed food products with trans fatty acids (TFA) from the market, as set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) through Circular No. 2021-028 which mandates food manufacturers, producers, and distributors to reformulate their products and shift towards a TFA-free food production by June 18, 2023.

“We need to protect our children and their hearts from the dangers of trans fat.”

“We urge the incoming government of presumptive president Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. to be united in protecting the heart health of Filipinos by enacting the Trans Fat Free Philippines Bill.”

“The Filipino people, for the sake of their heart health, deserve a trans fat-free Philippines by 2023. We laud the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its commitment to this vision and urge the food industry to observe the strictest compliance.” 

"The artworks in the exhibit prove that heart disease remains to be a prevalent concern for Filipinos.

“It’s time to protect Filipinos’ heart health from the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) caused by trans fatty acids (TFA).” This was the statement of the Department of Health (DOH), World Health Organization Philippines (WHO), and public interest law group ImagineLaw on Valentine’s Day as they called on legislators to pass a measure that will eliminate industrially added TFA in the country’s food supply, as a bid to promote heart health and reduce the risk of CVDs among Filipinos.

Law group ImagineLaw commends the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for protecting consumers’ heart health amid the COVID-19 pandemic through the issuance of FDA Circular No. 2021-028 entitled “Guidelines for Prepackaged Processed Food Products Containing Trans-Fatty Acids (TFA).”

ImagineLaw welcomes the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s commitment to eliminate toxic trans fat from the Philippines’ food supply within two years. The FDA ensures the elimination of trans fat in the country’s food supply by developing best-practice regulations with strong enforcement and monitoring mechanisms. The regulations will implement the recently-issued Department of Health (DOH) Administrative Order No. 2021-0039 setting the national policy to remove industrial trans fatty acids (TFA) that cause heart attacks.

The World Health Organization (WHO) in the Philippines today lauded the Department of Health’s policy to promote prevention and control non-communicable diseases by reducing industrially-produced trans fatty acids (iTFA) in pre-packaged and processed food, and increasing public awareness on the negative impacts of TFA.

Filipinos may now help pass the Trans Fat Free Philippines Bill in Congress. To support the passage of the Trans Fat Free Philippines Bills, ImagineLaw, a public interest law organization, launched an advocacy website for Trans Fat Free Philippines that provides access to essential information on trans fat and allows the public an opportunity to participate in the advocacy.

The Senate Committee on Trade, Commerce, and Entrepreneurship, with the Committees on Health and Demography, Ways and Means, and Finance, convened a Technical Working Group (TWG) to deliberate on Senate Bill Nos. 1916 and 1954, sponsored by Senator Nancy Binay, Senator Risa Hontiveros, and Senator Francis Pangilinan.