In response to the growing incidences of lifestyle diseases in Jamaica, the Ministry of Health and Wellness today announced the launch of the ‘Better For You’ programme which will be available at select restaurants island-wide.
‘Better For You’ as the name suggests, was borne out of focus groups for the national change agenda on lifestyle or non-communicable diseases (NCDs) programme ‘Jamaica Moves’ , where participants indicated that due to their hectic schedules they were unable to properly prepare meals at home, thus turning to restaurants to provide their daily meals.
Using this information, the Ministry’s team, led by Minister of Health and Wellness Dr. Christopher Tufton consulted with leading selected restaurant chains over the past two years to see how they could partner to devise a programme which would allow persons to have recognizable healthier options in these participating locations. That process culminated into an agreed position for a designation of selected menu options labeled as “better for you” in participating restaurants.
“In public health, we must accept the cultural shifts in our society away from home cooked meals to restaurant meals and respond by encouraging consumer choice towards healthier options. This is only possible by providing information and encouraging better healthier choices. This is what the ‘Better for You’ menu designation is intended to do,” said Minister of Health and Wellness Dr. Chris Tufton. Over time we will promote this designation in all types of food establishments. In the meantime we are happy for the collaboration with these initial restaurant chains.
“At Wendy’s, we believe in fresh food and in giving people choices to live a balanced lifestyle. We are excited to partner with the Ministry on this initiative towards making Jamaica an overall healthier society” shared Mr. Maurice Sloley, Operations Manager of Wendy’s.
For his part, Andrei Roper, Brand Manager for KFC, noted that “KFC is fully aligned and fully supportive of the Ministry’s Better For you programme. We understand that people lead busy lives and that they are always on the go and need a quick solution. Better For You helps KFC to highlight that we have choices to fit every lifestyle.”
The Better For You programme, will be represented by an special icon affixed to the menu offering and available at participating locations of KFC, Wendy’s, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Popeyes, Little Caesars, Island Grill and Juici.
