Author: infoAlimentario

Panama – Industry representatives request greater clarity in the labeling of substitute products

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Amid the growing debate regarding the use and commercialization of products in Panama, the Panamanian Industrial Union (SIP in Spanish) has called for the strengthening of regulations and transparency in food labeling, aiming to safeguard the consumer’s right to be accurately informed.

The issue, which gained prominence recently due to the conflict between milk producers and processing plants, has highlighted the necessity to clearly differentiate between original products and substitutes, which imitate or replace others without being identical in composition.

Lorena Henríquez, a representative of the SIP, explained that the discussion extends beyond the dairy sector. “This is a timely issue that erupted due to milk, but it is applicable to other sectors. Consumers often do not understand what a substitute or imitation is. Greater clarity in regulations and labeling is needed,” she stated.

Source of information: En Segundos

Brazil – ANVISA warns about the low quality of dietary supplements in the national market

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Representatives of the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA in Portuguese) have warned about the poor quality of dietary supplements available in the national market. According to them, this sector leads the list of complaints regarding health violations and has a high number of disapproved products.

Representatives from both the agency and the supplement industry were interviewed by the Consumer Protection Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. For the companies, the solution lies in self-regulation and adherence to established legal standards.

The supplement sector receives the highest number of complaints regarding health violations, as stated by Renata de Araújo Ferreira, the inspection coordinator at ANVISA. Between 2020 and 2025, 63% of the investigations initiated by the agency involved these products. She emphasized that more than half of the complaints are related to misleading advertising of supplements sold on digital platforms, which complicates monitoring and oversight.

Renata Ferreira reported that ANVISA intends to employ artificial intelligence (AI) tools to expedite the identification of irregular products online. She confirmed that this technology has already been utilized, resulting in the removal of over 230,000 advertisements, approximately 60,000 of which were related to dietary supplements.

Chile – Government and productive sector align to modernize sensitive food regulations

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Government and productive sector align to modernize sensitive food regulations. The Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI in Spanish) held a strategic meeting to update the National Technical Food Regulations related to food products, reaching a consensus on the need to coordinate efforts and modernize the regulations. These actions aim to strengthen the country’s food security and ensure a more coherent, updated, and representative regulatory framework for the sector’s needs.
The Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce, Eduardo Arango, highlighted the importance of the inter-institutional forum as a key space for building a solid governmental roadmap aligned with the policies of the National Assembly, the Central Government, and the requirements of the productive sector. He emphasized that the consensus reached reflects the State’s commitment to coordinating efforts, which will be essential for maintaining effective dialog with the industry, producers, and consumers in the next stage.

The first meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Health (MINSA in Spanish), the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MIDA in Spanish), the Consumer Protection and Competition Defense Authority (ACODECO in Spanish), the Panamanian Food Agency (APA in Spanish), the National Customs Authority (ANA in Spanish), and members of the National Assembly linked to the agri-food sector.

During the meeting, it was agreed to establish an inter-institutional roadmap to review technical regulations in strategic sectors such as dairy products, meat (beef and pork), poultry, and grains like rice.

Argentina – INV authorizes the legal enological practice of adding copper citrate to wine in order to reduce unpleasant odors and flavors caused by hydrogen sulfide and its derivatives

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The National Institute of Viticulture (INV in Spanish) has issued Resolution 29/2025, which permits the legal enological practice of adding copper citrate to wine in order to mitigate unpleasant odors and flavors caused by hydrogen sulfide and its derivatives.

ARTICLE 2.- The required dose of hydrated copper citrate to achieve the desired objective must be determined through a prior test. This dose must not exceed ONE GRAM PER HECTOLITER (1 g/hl).

ARTICLE 3.- The colloidal copper precipitate formed must be removed from the wine through filtration.

ARTICLE 4.- Upon completion of the treatment, the copper content in the wine must be equal to or less than the limit established by current regulations.

ARTICLE 5.- The copper citrate used must comply with the specifications of the International Enological Codex of the INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF VINE AND WINE (OIV in Spanish).

ARTICLE 6.- Violations of the provisions set forth in this resolution will be penalized in accordance with the provisions of Article 24 of Law No. 14,878.

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Brazil – A new electronic contact form is now available

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The new electronic form “Contact Us” is now available on the portal of the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa in Portuguese). The main innovation is that it is now integrated with the single sign-on of Gov.br. This means that users can utilize the same username and password they use for other Federal Government services, without needing to re-enter their personal information.

Through the new electronic form, users will be able to make technical inquiries to the Agency’s organic units, as well as request a copy of a procedure, request, or document.

Click here to access and learn more about the electronic form.