Austria's pioneering role: Who honors the fight against dangerous trans fats!

Austria's pioneering role: Who honors the fight against dangerous trans fats!

On May 19, 2025, Austria received significant recognition for its ongoing efforts in the fight against harmful trans fats. Minister of Health Korinna Schumann accepted the "Trans Fat Elimination Validation Certificate" from the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva. The award emphasizes Austria's pioneering role in reducing trans fats, which, according to WHO, are responsible for up to 300,000 deaths from coronary heart diseases every year.

Austria already introduced laws to abolish trans fats as the second country worldwide in 2009. Since then, the content of trans fats in food has dropped significantly, and the majority of the products have fulfilled the specified limit values for routine controls. These developments are not only a sign of effective political measures, but also for growing awareness in society about the health risks.

global Initiative and progress

As part of the WHO initiative for the elimination of industrially produced trans fats, in addition to Austria, Norway, Oman and Singapore have also been involved. These countries have consistently banished trans fats from their domestic foods and have established effective monitoring systems. According to a current WHO report, the urgent need for action becomes clear: Trans fat does not include health benefits and significantly increase the risk of heart disease. In comparison, almost 60 countries that make up about 46% of the world's population have already implemented extensive strategies for eliminating trans fats, which is significant progress.

An interim report of the WHO also illustrates the health risks of trans fats that are considered unsaturated fatty acids, in contrast to normal unsaturated fatty acids. The consumption of trans fats is associated with a higher mortality of cardiovascular diseases. Every year, more than 278,000 people die due to cardiovascular diseases that are due to the consumption of this fat.

strategies for elimination and outlook

In 2023, conditions to combat trans fats were already firmly established in our food systems for 3.7 billion people. The WHO continues to ask all countries to take suitable measures and to join the global movement for the elimination of trans fats. In this context, Minister Schumann appeals to all nations to recognize the challenges and to strengthen their strategies for eliminating trans fats to protect public health.

In summary, it can be said that Austria serves as a positive example in the fight against trans fats through its pioneering role and consistent policy. However, the path to complete elimination of this harmful fat requires constant surveillance and continuous measures at the international level. While less than 6% of the world population implemented proven strategies to combat trans fats in 2018, this number has now increased to almost 46%, which underlines the urgency and relevance of this topic.

For more information about the harmful effects of trans fats and global initiatives, read the reports of the Nau and SPIEGEL