FoodSwitch app announced as top 100 global innovative solutions
Australia’s most popular food-scanning app, FoodSwitch, has been recognised as one of the world’s top 100 innovative initiatives, selected from entries spanning more than 79 countries.
At the international 2013 Sustainia100 launch event in London, FoodSwitch was acknowledged for its efforts to help Australians make healthier food choices and reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke.
The app, developed by The George Institute for Global Health and BUPA Australia, uses the best available science and technology to deliver immediate, easy-to-understand nutritional information so users can switch to healthier options. There have been close to 350,000 Australian downloads since the app launched in January 2012.
Professor Bruce Neal from The George Institute said the app has made a healthier diet more accessible.
“Good eating habits are one of the best way to prevent disease, and as long as food labels remain a mystery to many, FoodSwitch will be here to help Australians do what they can to reduce the risk of dying early from the nation’s biggest killers: heart attack and stroke,” said Professor Neal.
Bupa’s Head of Clinical Advisory, Stan Goldstein, said: “We are thrilled to receive global recognition for improving Australian families’ diets and long-term health with a simple, practical tool. It’s all about empowering the individual to make smart food choices for the health of their family in a quick and easy way.”
Sustainia100 was launched on 9 June in London, and The Sustainia Award will be announced on 7 November in Copenhagen. The FoodSwitch app will appear in the 2013 Sustainia100 publication among leading international projects that focus on a more sustainable future.
About Sustainia100
Sustainia100 is a list of 100 groundbreaking solutions from around the world with the potential to transform companies, sectors and industries with sustainable practice. The Sustiania100 guide compiles the top sustainable solutions carefully vetted in close collaboration with the Advisory Board among more than 500 projects from 79 countries.
Sustainia100 identifies solutions within 10 sectors: Education, Energy, Health, Smart Cities, Resources, Buildings, Food, Fashion, Transportation and Information Technology.
Projects that feature in Sustainia100 are considered for the Sustainia Award, an annual international award given to a solution, technology or project with a significant potential to help build a more sustainable future. The selection jury is chaired by former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and includes former Prime Minister of Norway Gro Harlem Brundtland, EU Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard and Chair of the UN climate panel, IPCC, Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri.
The jury reviews and selects a winner to be announced at the grand Sustainia Award Ceremony in Copenhagen. For more information visit the Sustainia website.
About FoodSwitch
The revolutionary app, FoodSwitch, is empowering Australian shoppers to make healthier food choices and help reduce their risk of dying early from two of the nation’s biggest killers – heart attack and stroke.
Developed in Australia, and tailored for Australian shoppers, FoodSwitch allows users to scan the barcode of packaged foods using their phone camera and receive immediate, easy to understand nutritional advice and seek healthier choices.
The app displays healthier food choices based on the nutritional value of close to 40,000 packaged food products found in Australian supermarkets – the result of three years of research by pre-eminent food and health policy experts from The George Institute for Global Health.
There have been close to 350,000 Australian downloads to date, and the app now includes a SaltSwitch and GlutenSwitch filter.
FoodSwitch will be launched in the United Kingdom and New Zealand in the coming months and in India early 2014.
