Brussels, 30/01/2004 (Agence Europe) - The sixth annual meeting of the Trans-Atlantic Consumers Dialogue (TACD) will be beginning on 2 February in Brussels for three days. The role of food regulation in the fight against obesity (3 February) and legislation on copyright and consumers' rights (4 February) are the two main themes on which the European and US associations will examine with a view to formulating recommendations to the competent regulatory authorities. David Byrne, commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection and Shaun Donnell of the US Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs will be speaking at the inaugural session on Monday.
On the eve of this meeting, Commissioner Byrne declared that the TACD was a formidable source of inspiration for decision makers in the EU and USA. He stated that he was particularly interested by the debate on the fight against obesity, a phenomenon that he described as a major health problem for public health on both sides of the Atlantic. Changing consumer behaviour was an essential element for reducing this problem, he said. The detailed programme for this meeting can be consulted at the following address: http: //http://www.tacd.org ).