Page 130 - Crisis Communication Practical PR Strategies

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Challenges for the International Food Sector 111
The information that contaminated feed had been given inadver-
tently to cattle and pigs led the EU to order the destruction of those
animals at around 1,000 farms. The Food Industry Federation of
Belgium (FEVIA) estimated that 6,000 people were out of a job and
US $750 million was lost as result of the crisis. A report from the
Belgian government stated that the cost of the dioxin crisis to the food
industry was US $1.54 billion, half within the agricultural sector and
half in other food industry sectors.

Health and diet issues

Health issues related to obesity, which is at epidemic proportions
around the world, forced the European and US authorities to take
measures to fight the problem.
Being severely overweight or obese is a risk factor in many chronic
diseases and premature death. The EU called upon member states to
conceive and implement initiatives aimed at promoting healthy diets
and physical activity. A ground-breaking example was the announce-
ment made by the European Platform for Action on Dietary, Physical
Activity and Health Issues. This EU initiative was presented in detail
by Markos Kyprianos during the open session of FHFI’s Annual
General Meeting in March 2006.
Multinational food companies have joined the European
Commission’s drive to fight obesity in Europe. They have developed
programmes such as McDonalds’ Nutrition Information Initiative,
and have stopped advertising certain foods to children under 12.
Members of UNESDA (the soft drinks manufacturers association, rep-
resented by Coca-Cola and Pepsi) and Unilever, are reformulating
their products, and Kraft Foods is not marketing products directly to
children unless they meet a certain nutritional profile. The first official
reaction to the problem of obesity and nutrition came from France,
which has established rules whereby all advertisements for food and
drink in France must carry healthy eating messages; non-complying
companies will face fines.

Crisis preparation is the key to success

The food industry, both the primary and the commercial sector, is
active in the implementation of crisis management procedures. It is
well versed in difficult situations, due to the vast number of food issues