“Dying for A Snack: How Junk Food is Killing Uganda’s Children.”

By Patrick Jaramogi

KAMPALA – On a cold steel bench at the Uganda Cancer Institute in Mulago, 12-year-old Joshua Mubiru (not his real name) sits curled in pain, clutching his stomach. At just 12, Joshua weighs a staggering 98 kilograms, a weight almost twice what a healthy boy his age should carry. His small eyes are dim with fatigue, his voice a whisper of the laughter it once knew. He has cancer—and doctors say his battle may be linked to what he ate.

Joshua’s mother, Sarah, wipes a tear from her cheek. “He loved fast food,” she says. “He could eat chips, fried chicken, and sugary drinks morning, noon, and night. We didn’t know this could one day kill him.”

Joshua is one of more than 700 children diagnosed with cancer annually in Uganda, a figure that continues to climb. And while cancer has many causes, an alarming trend is emerging—the food our children are eating is making them sick.

Today, a coalition of civil society organizations including CEHROFT Uganda, SEATINI Uganda, CONSENT Uganda, and FIAN Uganda sounded the alarm during a press conference in Kampala. They called on the Government of Uganda to immediately roll out Front-of-Pack (FoP) labeling on food products—labels that clearly indicate when a product is high in saturated fats, sugars, and salts.

“The shelves in our shops are full of dangerous foods disguised in bright colors, cartoon characters, and deceptive health claims,” said Dr. David Kabanda the Executive Director CEFROHT Uganda. “These ultra-processed snacks are cheap, addictive, and deadly. Children like Joshua are paying the price.”

A Dangerous Appetite

Joshua’s story is not unique.

From supermarkets in Ntinda, Bugolobi,Wandegeya to school kiosks in Gulu, Masaka, Mbale and roadside stalls in Mbarara, children are bombarded with brightly-packaged crisps, biscuits, soda, and sweetened juices. These are not just snacks; they have become a lifestyle, pushed aggressively through television ads, billboards, and social media. A report released by the coalition revealed that food ads featuring high-sugar snacks are most common between 4 pm and 8 pm—prime hours when children are watching TV.

“Children are developing a preference for sugary and salty foods before they even learn to write their names,” said Dr. Esther Nakabugo, a nutritionist.  “What we’re feeding them is not food, it’s poison.. Food is a fundamental human right, but it can also kill. If it’s not safe it’s not food,” said Dr Archileo Kaaya, a don at the School of Health Science at Makerere University. Prof Kaaya notes that the high demand for highly processed foods, salts and saturated fats and sugar was cause for rising cancer patients in Uganda

 

Joshua’s parents confess they didn’t know better. “He used to get excited seeing his favorite snack advertised during cartoons,” Sarah says. “He would beg us to buy it. It was cheap and made him happy. We thought it was harmless.”

Prof Kaaya observed that the long-term consequences of poor diets in children include obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancers—conditions that are now being diagnosed at earlier ages than ever before.

The Call to Action

At the heart of today’s advocacy is Front-of-Pack labeling, a system used in several countries around the world including Chile, Mexico, and the UK. These simple warning labels—red for high sugar, yellow for moderate fat, green for healthy options—allow consumers to make informed choices at a glance.

“We are not asking for much, if this has worked in countries such as Chile, Mexico and UK, it can as well work here in Uganda. The country is losing over UGX 7 Trillion in costs related to treating NCDs such as cancer,” said Jonathan Lubega the Program Assistant with SEATINI Uganda. “We are simply asking the government to protect our children from products that are designed to addict and harm them. FoP labeling gives power back to the consumer. and let me sound a warning to food processors, manufacturing that they must stop advertising foods that kill our children, of they don’t, we shall take them legally in courts of law,” sounded Dr Kabanda, a food Rights Lawyer.

The CSOs have also demanded a ban on the sale of ultra-processed foods in schools, where tuck shops often stock nothing but sugary drinks, biscuits, and fried snacks. “Schools should be centers of health and learning, not disease,” Akol emphasized.

Advertising or Indoctrination?

The coalition also criticized the targeted marketing of junk food to children—a practice they say is both unethical and dangerous.

“There must be restrictions on food advertising, especially during children’s viewing hours,” said Henry Kimera Team leader at CONSENT Uganda. “Companies are grooming a generation hooked on sugar and salt. There is currently a very aggressive, but dangerous nature of advertising to children. Bright packaging, catchy jingles, and TV ads on children’s program and online platforms make these foods look fun and exciting, but in reality, many of them are dangerous when consumed regularly”, added Kimera.

Kimera cited examples of popular food brands sponsoring school competitions, handing out free samples, or running loyalty programs that reward children for consuming more junk food.

“We are planting the seeds of illness and reaping deaths,” he said.

A System That Must Change

In the pediatric wing of the Cancer Institute, nurses move in and out quietly, tending to young patients like Joshua. The machines beep rhythmically. A boy nearby coughs violently. Across the room, a girl with sunken cheeks and a bandaged head plays silently with a broken doll.

Joshua leans against his mother, trying to nap.

“He dreams of playing football,” Sarah whispers. “But now, even walking is hard.”

If Uganda doesn’t act quickly, public health experts warn, more children like Joshua will suffer. The fight is not just against cancer—but against a system that prioritizes profit over children’s health.

The CSOs plan to petition Parliament and the Ministry of Health in the coming weeks and are calling on parents, teachers, and media houses to join the movement. “Our children deserve better,” said Dr. Kabanda. “We owe them the truth about what they eat.”

As the sun sets over Kampala, Sarah hugs her son tightly. “If we had known earlier, maybe he wouldn’t be here,” she says.

For Joshua, and hundreds of others battling illnesses linked to bad diets, it’s not just about eating right. It’s about surviving.