Founding congress of the "Platform Nutrition and Exercise eV"

In balance – for a healthy life!

On September 29, 2004, around 1000 participants from all over Germany attended the one-day founding congress of the “Nutrition and Exercise Platform” association in Berlin. The congress marks the start of concerted work to prevent and combat obesity in children and young people in Germany. "The necessary persuasiveness and dynamism to bring about long-term change can only be achieved through the cooperation of many actors who are committed together," said Prof. Dr. medical Erik Harms, chairman of the platform's recently elected board of directors and president of the German Society for Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. The eight founding members - the Federal Government, the food industry, the German Society for Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der Deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH, the Union Food-Genuss-Gaststätten, the German Sports Association / German Sports Youth, the Federal Parents' Council and the umbrella organizations of the Statutory health insurance companies - presented their programs. The founding program is entitled "In balance - for a healthy life". Diverse fields of action are now waiting for the association: In addition to the documentation and evaluation of the international and national status on the causes and prevention of obesity, criteria for “good practice” in preventive measures are to be published in the near future based on these findings. The transfer of this knowledge and the factual information of the public are the further steps on the way to a new consciousness in the population.

As a founding member, the CMA welcomes the fact that actors with very different backgrounds are pulling together via the "Nutrition and Exercise Platform". "With the best professional practice and high legal standards, German farmers produce high-quality raw materials for a wide range of different foods. While the quality of these products is still in their own hands, the decision as to when, how and how often they are consumed is ultimately in someone else's hands - in the hands of the consumer," explained Dr. Andrea Dittrich, head of the CMA Science PR department and member of the association's extended board, at the joint presentation of the platform.

The CMA also sees its commitment against the background that many people today are increasingly losing knowledge of how and where food is produced, what it is made of, and what to pay attention to when purchasing, storing and preparing it. The CMA sees it as one of its central tasks to convey these basic things to children - directly, but also through parents or educators. Every day, consumers large and small decide on the use of food and ultimately - linked to sufficient exercise - on their lifestyle. However, such decisions require knowledge. Nutritional and product information - prepared for teachers and students, parents and children, doctors and nutritionists - has long been an important pillar of CMA communication work. And only those who are sufficiently informed can develop an awareness of the value of food and a balanced diet. Through the “Nutrition and Exercise Platform”, the CMA can now work together with others to make a more targeted approach to young people and to create greater awareness.

In addition to the CMA, numerous other initiatives and institutions presented their ideas and projects on the topic of nutrition and exercise at the congress. “There are lots of good ideas. The program for this congress shows this. Now it’s time to bundle them together! In view of empty coffers, it is of course also important to use resources in a targeted manner and save costs,” emphasized Dr. Andrea Dittrich concludes.

Source: Berlin [cma]