Sri Lanka leads South Asia in nutrition labelling – UNICEF

UNICEF warns of worsening child malnutrition crisis in South Asia

Sri Lanka has become the first and only country in South Asia to introduce front-of-pack traffic light labelling to help consumers assess the healthiness of food products — a step hailed as crucial in tackling the growing nutrition crisis facing children across the region.  

According to UNICEF’s latest report, Feeding Profit: How Food Environments are Failing Children; South Asia is grappling with a triple burden of malnutrition: undernourishment, anaemia and rising obesity. The number of children aged 5–19 living with overweight conditions has surged fivefold since 2000 to reach 70 million, while child obesity has more than doubled in the same period.  

Despite this, the region continues to bear the world’s heaviest burden of undernutrition: one in three children under five are stunted, one in 10 suffer from wasting, and one in four are born with low birth weight. Anaemia remains alarmingly high, affecting nearly half of women and adolescent girls in South Asia.  

“Every child has the right to eat well so that he or she can grow up healthy in body and mind. Leadership all over South Asia must prioritize collective action to overcome the triple burden of malnutrition,” said Sanjay Wijesekera, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia.  

The report also warns that children are being exposed to food environments dominated by unhealthy products. A 2023 UNICEF survey of more than 7,500 adolescents across five South Asian countries found that packaged snacks, sugary drinks, and fast food are widely available, even in schools. Nearly half of respondents said they see food brands or logos in schools, while over half admitted that advertising influences their choices.  

UNICEF has urged governments to regulate food environments more strictly, including banning the promotion and marketing of unhealthy foods within a 5-kilometre radius of schools and ensuring affordable, nutritious options for families.