8 June 2022
On behalf of 5 cities (Amsterdam, The Hague, Ede, Rotterdam and Utrecht), the Law Center for Health & Life studied the legal options at municipalities’ disposal to ensure a safe, healthy food environment. Partly in response to this UvA study, the municipalities sent the Dutch State Secretary for Health an incendiary letter in which they ask for a change in legislation so they can fulfil their duty of care in the future.
Obesity among adults in the Netherlands has doubled since the 1980s. Over half the Dutch population is currently overweight. A major cause of this is the increasing availability of unhealthy food. For example, the past 15 years saw a 37 percent increase in fast food outlets in Rotterdam’s city centre; in parts of Rotterdam with a low socioeconomic status (SES areas) this increase was even 57 percent. If these trends continue, 62 percent of adults will have weight problems within 20 years. People who are overweight are at greater risk for heart conditions, diabetes and also a more serious course of infectious diseases and other conditions, like COVID.
The report shows the contradiction that, based on national, international and European health law and policies, municipalities are responsible for ensuring a safe and healthy food environment for its residents, while at the same time the legal possibilities are very limited in practice.
Municipalities have some options, for example when it comes to food on offer in sports canteens, event licenses or retail diversity. Other instruments like providing information and prevention programmes can also help promote healthier food choices. Apart from this, there are standard spatial instruments, like zoning plans, which municipalities can use to influence the environment. But these need to be based on spatial arguments, like noise or odour nuisance. The options above give municipalities insufficient tools to actually regulate the food environment and organise a living environment with sufficient healthy food options. The study shows the spatial legal instruments currently provide insufficient scope for this.
This is a classic example of legislation trailing behind science. For some time now, the changing food environment is known to be a major cause of rising obesity among the population. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that the principle of individual freedom of choice is untenable under current legislation if people live in an environment where most of the readily available food is unhealthy.
The researchers present several ideas in their report that can give municipalities more scope, such as amendments to the Commodities Act and the new Environment and Planning Act. In response to the study, the municipalities have sent a letter to the central government to discuss expanding their legal options.