Why it matters
Back-of-pack nutrition panels are detailed but hard to use in a busy shop: the print is small, the numbers are technical, and the information sits on the reverse of the pack.
At the same time, a large share of the products on supermarket and grocery shelves contain excessive amounts of sugar, salt and unhealthy fats, and diet-related non-communicable diseases are a growing burden in Uganda. Consumers cannot act on information they cannot see.
What Front-of-Package Warning Labelling is
Front-of-Package Warning Labels are clear, easy-to-read nutrition labels placed on the front of food packages to help consumers quickly identify products that are high in nutrients and ingredients of critical concern.
They help people identify foods high in sugar, salt or unhealthy fats, compare products more easily and make informed purchasing decisions, and they encourage manufacturers to reformulate products by reducing unhealthy nutrients.
In Uganda, the warning would be based on the thresholds already set by the Uganda Nutrient Profile Model, a technical and scientific tool approved through the country's own policy process.
Why it belongs with other food environment policies
Warning labels work best alongside the rest of a healthy food environment agenda: restricting the marketing of unhealthy food to children, improving public food procurement, and keeping clear back-of-pack nutrition information in place.
Monitoring and enforcement matter too. A label only changes behaviour if shoppers see it consistently and manufacturers know it is applied.
Our ask
The Coalition is asking the Government of Uganda to make Front-of-Package Warning Labelling mandatory for processed and ultra-processed foods and non-alcoholic beverages, using the thresholds of the Uganda Nutrient Profile Model.
Uganda has already approved the Nutrient Profile Model. Mandatory Front-of-Package Warning Labelling is the next step: it would put that technical standard in front of every shopper, at the point of purchase.
This is an advocacy ask, not a done deal. Mandatory Front-of-Package Warning Labelling has not yet been adopted in Uganda.