How can we move towards less poverty and a more equitable food landscape as a step towards increased human health, economic development and a more realistic notion of freedom of choice?

I find an email from a big food company in my inbox. The subject line reads: "Eat Less, Move More, Live Better" I click on the email to read it in full.

"Dear Health Professional", it starts. It then goes on to describe how nearly 20 million adults in South Africa are struggling with being overweight and obese, stating that, in fact, we are one of the countries with the highest obesity occurrences in the world (according to the World Obesity Federation we rank 25th for females and 131st for males). "A concerning fact," they write, "that can partly be attributed to cultural misperceptions and uninformed lifestyle decisions".

The second paragraph goes on to say how they would now like to share information "to help patients understand the relationship between obesity and the choices they make every day". And that last part -- the word "choices" -- unsettles me.

The word "choice" implies the ability to select between two or more options. It involves decision-making where a person typically has the freedom, power and agency to choose based on their needs or preferences.

Now consider this: over half of adults in South Africa are overweight or obese, costing...