Day: 19/09/2023

Bolivia – Bolivia develops field research on the effectiveness of front-end nutritional labeling

/ infoAlimentario

Between July and August, the country conducted field research in the three departments of the central axis to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of front-of-pack nutrition labeling on food products with a view to its future implementation.
It has been shown that front-of-pack nutrition labeling on food products helps consumers to be more aware of the potential harmful effects of a product and to choose healthier alternatives.
The research process in Bolivia is led by the Ministry of Health and Sports, through the Directorate of Health Promotion and the nutrition areas of the Departmental Health Services (SEDES in Spanish) of Cochabamba, Santa Cruz, La Paz and the Regional Health Service (SERES) of El Alto, with technical support from the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) and the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA in Spanish).

The results of this research will guide the identification and development of an appropriate front-end nutrition labeling scheme for consumers in Bolivia, allowing the population to easily identify when a product is excessive in critical nutrients associated with obesity and Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs in Spanish). It will also help consumers make informed choices regarding the foods they consume and discourage the consumption of products with excessive sugar, fat and sodium content. This will ultimately result in contributing to the protection of public health and the reduction of health costs, including improving the economy.

For further information, you can access the original source in Spanish

etiquetado frontal

Brazil – Amends Normative Instruction No. 211, dated 1, 2023, which establishes the technological functions, maximum limits and conditions of use of food additives and technology aids authorized for use in foods

/ infoAlimentario

The National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA in Portuguese) published Public Consultation No. 1,198 amending Normative Instruction No. 211, dated 1° 2023, which establishes the technological functions, maximum limits and conditions of use of food additives and technology aids authorized for use in food.

For further information, you can access the original source in Portuguese

consulta-publica-n-1198-coparDownload

Brazil – End of the deadline for compliance with DRC N° 243/2018 on food supplements

/ infoAlimentario

Last July 27 was the deadline for companies to adapt their products to the new regulations for foods categorized as dietary supplements. Collegiate Council Resolution (RDC) N° 243, published in 2018, created the category “food supplement” and granted a five-year adaptation period for products already on the market.

Within that period, these products could be manufactured, imported and marketed in accordance with the standards applied in their regularization, with no changes in formulation or labeling.

With the end of the deadline, 3,179 products that were exempted from Anvisa registration by the new regulation had their registrations cancelled. From now on, these products can only be manufactured and imported if they fully comply with the requirements established by the new regulation. They must also be regularized before the local health surveillance agency, by means of a notice of commencement of manufacture or importation.

The standard also allows the marketing until the end of the validity period established on the label of ineligible products that were manufactured and imported before July 27, 2023.

For further information, you can access the original source in Portuguese

Paraguay – INAN publishes public consultation on modification of Resolution on food additives and alcoholic beverages

/ infoAlimentario

The National Institute of Food and Nutrition (INAN in Spanish) published the public consultation on: Draft Resolution of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, which approves the MODIFICATION OF RESOLUTIONS GMC No. 53/98, 54/98, 07/06 AND 08/06 ON FOOD ADDITIVES and the MERCOSUR TECHNICAL REGULATION ON DEFINITIONS RELATED TO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES (EXCEPT FOR FERMENTED THOSE), THEIR RAW MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING PROCESSES (REPEAL OF GMC RESOLUTION No. 77/94).

For further information, you can access the original source in Spanish

agre-iii-a_p.res_.-modificacic2a2n-aditivos_es.docxDownload

Article/Peru – Nutritional information on the labels of processed and ultra-processed foods and beverages marketed in a supermarket chain in Lima in 2022

/ infoAlimentario

Objectives.

To estimate the number of processed and ultra-processed beverages and foods that provide nutritional information on their packaging, and to describe the characteristics of this information, as well as to determine the presence of nutritional information on products with octagons.

Materials and methods.

Photographs were taken of the labels of 4404 processed and ultra-processed beverages and foods marketed in supermarkets in Metropolitan Lima. The information on the label was collected and registered in the mobile and web version of the Food Label Information Program (FLIP). We analyzed variables related to the nutritional information, the way in which such information is declared and the information in beverages and foods with octagons.

Results.

Only 71.4% of the products had some type of nutritional information. Of these, 13.8% provided the nutritional information as a text and not in a table, and only 56.3% declared it per 100 grams or milliliters. Of the total number of foods with the octagon “Contains trans fats”, only 19.2% declared their content.

Conclusions.

More than a quarter of the beverages and packaged foods in the Peruvian market did not provide nutritional information of any kind, and of those that did, only one did so in different formats and units. In addition, we found that a proportion of beverages and foods for each type of octagon did not declare information of the nutrient that is mentioned in the octagon.

For further information, you can access the original source in English

documentDownload