Big food's ambivalence: Seeking profit and responsibility for health

T. Tempels, M. Verweij and V. Blok

American Journal of Public Health, 2017, vol. 107, issue 3, 402-406

Abstract: In this article, we critically reflect on the responsibilities that the food industry has for public health. Although food companies are often significant contributors to public health problems (e.g., obesity, type 2 diabetes), the mere possibility of corporate responsibility for public health seems to be excluded in the academic public health discourse. We argue that the behavior of several food companies reflects a split corporate personality, as they contribute to public health problems and simultaneously engage in activities to prevent them. By understanding responsibility for population health as a shared responsibility, we reassess the moral role of the food industry from a forward-looking perspective on responsibility and ask what food companies can and should do to promote health.

Date: 2017
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:10.2105/ajph.2016.303601_0

DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2016.303601

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