SOS – Save Our Supplements
A cause warranting your support.
LATEST INFORMATION ~ for immediate use.
Date…21st August 2009
NEW ‘TOOLKITS’ POISED TO STIR SUPPORT ACROSS
MEMBER STATES
A stepped-up pan-European Web initiative to retain higher potency food supplements throughout the EU was launched today, by Consumers for Health Choice (CHC).
The site, at www.consumersforhealthchoice.com provides easy to use Tool-Kits which outline how everyone – including consumers, manufacturer, retailers and practitioners can target José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, personally.
The multi lingual venture is aimed at England, Ireland, Italy, France, Germany, Spain and Poland, enabling everyone to make their voices heard “at this critical time” as maximum permitted levels are being discussed, and with great urgency.
CHC, the active group behind the highly successful Save-Our-Supplements campaign, is fighting EU legislation which plans to cut the free availability of vitamins & minerals in quantities which are meaningful for good health.
The site urges everyone who has an interest in supplements, whether they are regular users or not, to write letters containing some of the following points:
- Why you take vitamin & mineral supplements – yourself, your family.
- That the Food Supplements Directive is an opportunity to open up the market and allow greater freedom of choice to all supplement users across all Member States.
- Nutrient doses should be set as high as possible in accordance with the levels that good science supports as safe.
- If unnecessarily low dose levels are set, consumer choice will be restricted, public health could be undermined, and your local health food store may close.
… and be sent to José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, 1049 Brussels, Belgium – or through this link:
http://ec.europa.eu/commission_barroso/president/contact/mail/index_en.htm
The move follows recent “alarming” signals, including the confirmed appointment of Lord Jeffrey Rooker as the new Chairman of the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
CHC forced the Labour peer into a humiliating U-turn in 1998 when he tried to ban the free sale of higher dose Vitamin B6, but many campaigners fear that he could now be handed the complete supplements portfolio.
Sue Croft, of CHC said: “As things stand, doses of all vitamins and all minerals could be reduced to meaningless amounts to appease countries such as France and Germany who wish to control the market – and we are not at all certain that Lord Rooker will be prepared to stand up and fight for consumer interests in Brussels.
“The official view of EU regulators remains that the destruction of the British industry is an acceptable price to pay for harmonizing the market across all Member Stares. That is a big hurdle for us to overcome – but we are determined to find a way.
“It is certainly true that our campaign earlier this year effectively delayed the Commission from pushing forward with unnecessarily restrictive levels, and it now seems the figures on dose levels will be delayed even further until after the (re-run) Referendum in Ireland in September. EU officials cannot afford to offend the Irish voters at this time.
“We still have everything to fight for when the new Commissioner dealing with this legislation is appointed after the summer recess – but in the meantime we absolutely must keep up the pressure so that the campaign does not lose momentum. Our new Toolkits will enable supplements users across Member States to easily send a firm message to the President – that is what we need right now!”
YOUR HELP NOW IS ESSENTIAL ~ THANK YOU
For further information:
Sue Croft, Director Consumers for Health Choice: Tel: 01769 581612
www.consumersforhealthchoice.com
Consumers for Health Choice
222 Southbank House
Black Prince Road
London SE1 7SJ
Tel: 020 7463 0696