Hontiveros Pushes for Warning Labels, Marketing Restrictions to Protect Children from 'Unhealthy' Food

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Senator Risa Hontiveros calls the public to support Senate Bill No. 2700, the "Healthy Food Marketing Environment Act," mandating food warning labels and marketing restrictions in a bid to protect children’s health.

“Ngayong ipinagdiriwang natin ang National Children’s Month, sana po ay maging katuwang kayo sa ating kampanya na ipasa ang Healthy [Food] Marketing Environment Act,” Hontiveros urged the public. 

The bill aims to protect children from obesity and related diseases—such as heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, and certain cancers—by informing consumers if a food product may be harmful to their health. It also promotes responsible marketing to children by limiting advertisements of food and beverages that may be harmful to children’s health.

“Iminumungkahi ng panukalang ito na lagyan ng front-of-pack warning label ang mga produkto para agad na nakikita kung ang isang produkto ay lagpas sa itinakdang threshold ng energy, fat, salt, o sugar,” Hontiveros said in a statement. 

If enacted, children and consumers will be able to see which products exceed recommended thresholds for fat, sugar, and salt as the law requires food manufacturers to add clear nutritional warning labels on the front of a product's packaging. 

Additionally, children will see less marketing of potentially harmful products as the policy regulates the marketing of products with a warning label in public and online spaces, child-centered settings such as schools, and on TV and radio. 

"Isininusulong din nito na i-regulate ang marketing sa iba’t ibang media channels at sa mga lugar na madalas pinupuntahan ng mga bata, para mabawasan ang exposure ng ating mga anak sa mga pagkain at inuming hindi nakakabuti sa kanilang kalusugan."

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 99% of social media posts advertising food in the Philippines promote ‘unhealthy’ food. Studies have shown that high exposure to the marketing of unhealthy food increases children’s brand preferences, which drives their purchases and consumption of unhealthy foods. This contributes to poor dietary habits and increases the risk of  developing health problems later on in life.

Global success cited 

“Nagawa na po ang batas na ito sa ibang mga bansa at talagang nagkaroon umano ng positibong resulta,” Hontiveros added. 

Evidence from Chile shows that the law on food labeling and advertising decreased household consumption of beverages that have “high-in” warning labels by up to 23.7%. Additionally, similar regulations addressing unhealthy food marketing on television have significantly decreased children’s exposure to such advertising.

Meanwhile, in Uruguay, the implementation of food warning labeling policy increased citizens’ ability to understand nutritional information.

Building on the success of similar policies, the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) is working toward adopting food warning labeling regulations. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom, having already enacted comprehensive food marketing restrictions, is now aiming to implement stricter provisions. 

In the House of Representatives, a counterpart bill, House Bill No. 9819, along with similar measures HB No. 10886, HB No. 10198, HB No. 10674, and HB No. 10361, were filed by Representatives Reynolds Michael Tan, Maria Rachel Arenas, Samantha Santos, Alfred Delos Santos, and Patrick Michael Vargas, respectively. Representatives Steve Solon and Salvador Pleyto also co-authored the proposed law. 

"Bilang nanay, isang batas ito na malapit sa puso ko lalo pa at may anak akong immunocompromised…I am sure na kapag ang diet ng ating mga anak ay mas malusog at balanse, mas malakas nilang mahaharap ang anumang hamon ng buhay,” Hontiveros said. 

Law group ImagineLaw welcomed the health policy measure. “If we want Filipino children to choose healthy, we have to build an environment that makes choosing healthy easy,” said Atty. Sophia San Luis, executive director of ImagineLaw. 

Watch full statement here - 
https://www.facebook.com/imaginelawPH/videos/1064290851830664

DepEd Set to Simplify Senior High School Curriculum

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Education Secretary Sonny Angara emphasized that one of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) priorities is to fast-track the review of the Senior High School (SHS) Curriculum and reduce the subjects to let learners focus more on work immersion.

“So, we must have flexibility in our system. If we reduce the subjects of our SHS curriculum, the students will have more time for the on-the-job training or work immersion needed by the industry so that our senior high school graduates will become more employable even if they lack work experience,” Secretary Angara said during the 2024 Regional Conference on Educational Planning in Asia.

“So, we’re on the right direction to reduce the core subjects of our SHS curriculum to just five or six subjects,” he added.

On Monday, the Department met with academic experts to accelerate efforts in reviewing and streamlining the SHS program and subjects.

The meeting with consultants from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) sought to provide recommendations on the structure of the SHS curriculum and on the content of English, Science, and Math standards and curriculum guides.

Moreover, DepEd has collaborated with ADB to provide technical assistance and professional guidance to DepEd specialists in revising the SHS curriculum.

Education Secretary Angara previously emphasized that the country’s basic education curriculum was already crowded according to education experts from other countries.

DepEd Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Gina Gonong, Assistant Secretary Joyce Dr Andaya, Teacher Education Council Executive Director Jennie Jocson, Office of the Secretary Director Maggie Del-Valle Ramoso attended the said consultation meeting. EDCOM Executive Director Karol Mark Yee was also in attendance.

ADB were represented by consultants Margaret Bigelow, Mary Coupland, Michael Murray, Mel Dixon, Gerard Edward McCloughan, and Dagmar Arthur to discuss their role, highlighting the provision of technical advice to the Department based on evidence-based approaches and strategies on the process of curriculum review and revision.

E911 National Office commends PLDT and Smart for direct routing of 911 calls to NGA911 activated call centers for free

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The Emergency 911 (E911) National Office commended PLDT and Smart for already routing emergency 911 calls directly to the activated local 911 command centers of Morong, Alaminos City, Pangasinan, and Cagayan de Oro City -- for free! This will further speed up the emergency response time of the concerned LGUs and provide quality public safety services to their constituents.

E911 executive director Francis Fajardo hopes other telecommunications companies and service providers will follow suit to already put into effect a nationwide unified and integrated 911 emergency response system in accordance with Executive Order (EO) 56.


The vision of a unified and integrated 911 emergency response system across the country is swiftly moving towards realization.

Advanced technology from Smart Telecommunications and the Philippine Long-Distance Telephone (PLDT) Company began to enable the seamless routing of 911 calls to the activated Local Command Centers in Morong, Rizal; Alaminos City, Pangasinan; and Cagayan De Oro City in October.

For Smart and PLDT subscribers in these areas, emergency calls are now routed directly to the respective local government unit’s (LGU) Local Emergency Response Centers. The streamlined process eliminates the previous step of routing calls through the Emergency 911 (E911) National Office and results in faster, more direct responses to emergencies.

“The primary mandate of the E911 National Office under the 911 National Program is to provide and ensure improved public safety services to the general public by providing a clear command structure for responsibility and accessibility. We should also facilitate the prompt deployment of a seamless nationwide communication infrastructure for emergency services through the joint efforts of the government, the private sector, and civil society,” said Executive Director Fajardo.

The Executive Director thanked PLDT and Smart for their commitment to ensure that their subscribers have quick and direct access to emergency assistance. Fajardo urged other telecommunications providers to join this life-saving initiative for the greater public’s good, safety, and survival.

NGA 911 Philippines Country Head Rob Llaguno echoed these sentiments, commending PLDT and Smart for facilitating the early routing of their subscribers’ 911 calls to the LGU Command Centers. This significant advancement further speeds up emergency response, enhancing the LGUs' ability to protect lives and property, Llaguno said.

“We are integration-ready for any telco and eager to work with all concerned to equip our local government units with our NextGen emergency response system that is faster, more responsive, and resilient,” Llaguno added.

Llaguno emphasized the comprehensive support provided to the LGUs they serve, including the Philippine National Police Public Safety Command Center (PNP PCC). “Our services include fully recorded 911 environments, seamless conference and transfer facilities for responders, and advanced mapping and location detection capabilities. Recent statistics indicate that approximately 90% of 911 calls received by the PNP PCC in NCR are met with response times of five minutes or less as a result.”