Author: infoAlimentario

Argentina – They warn about the risks associated with the dissolution of the National Food Commission

/ infoAlimentario

In a new offensive against the technical and participatory bodies of the State, the government of Javier Milei has dissolved the National Food Commission (CONAL in Spanish), a crucial institution for food security in the country. What was previously decided in a federal, scientific, and pluralistic space is now left in the hands of a few officials and companies, without opportunities for debate or citizen oversight.
The dismantling of CONAL was formalized through decree 538/2025, which amends the Argentine Food Code and transfers decision-making authority to the National Institute of Food (INAL in Spanish), which is under the National Administration of Medicines, Foods and Medical Technology (ANMAT in Spanish), and the National Service of Health and Quality of Agro-Food (SENASA in Spanish). Although these agencies possess technical expertise, what disappears with this measure is the participatory and federal architecture that ensured balanced regulation aimed at the public good.
The elimination of this space signifies much more than an administrative restructuring: it represents a setback in terms of transparency, social control, and the safeguarding of public interest against market interests. The official argument — ‘to streamline processes’ through platforms like SIFEGA — conceals the true impact: without plural deliberation, the Argentine food system becomes more vulnerable to corporate pressures and discretionary decisions.
Experts and sector leaders are already warning of the consequences: weakening of health consensus, loss of citizen and federal participation, and increased opacity in regulatory decisions. All of this occurs in a context where ultra-processed foods, controversial additives, and misleading advertising strategies, particularly aimed at children and adolescents, are proliferating.

Argentina – Six new enzymes are incorporated into the Argentine Food Code

/ infoAlimentario

Through Joint Resolution 40/2025, the Secretariat of Health Management and the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries have approved the addition of six new enzymes to the Argentine Food Code (CAA), a measure that directly affects the food industry and the development of new processing technologies.

The newly incorporated enzymes — sourced from Bacillus licheniformis, Pichia pastoris, Aspergillus niger, and Trichoderma reesei — will be utilized as technological aids in industrial processes, particularly in enhancing textures, flavors, and food preservation.

The incorporated enzymes and their origins

The resolution specifies the enzymes that will be included in Article 1263 of the CAA:

- Phospholipase C (Bacillus licheniformis).
- Phosphoinositide phospholipase C (Bacillus licheniformis).
- Acid prolyl endopeptidase (Pichia pastoris).
- Triacylglycerol lipase (Pichia pastoris).
- Prolyl oligopeptidase (Aspergillus niger expressed in Trichoderma reesei).
- Prolyl oligopeptidase (Aspergillus niger expressed in Aspergillus niger).

These enzymes perform functions such as the hydrolysis of proteins and lipids, the enhancement of organoleptic properties, and the optimization of industrial processes in baked goods, dairy products, oils, and beverages.

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Brazil – IDEC warns that the labeling of proteins in ultra-processed foods may mislead consumers

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The Brazilian Institute for Consumer Protection (IDEC in Portuguese) has released a survey indicating that many claims regarding the protein content of food and beverages sold in Brazil may lead consumers to erroneous conclusions. The study warns about the increasing number of products that emphasize added protein as a healthy differentiating factor, even in the case of ultra-processed foods.

Sixty-five claims related to protein were identified across these 52 products. Most of these claims pertained to the amount present in the food, but 11 instances contained information deemed potentially misleading. One cited example was a granola that claimed to contain 30 grams of protein per package; however, upon checking the recommended serving size on the label, the value was reduced to only 5 grams, which represents merely 5% of the daily recommended intake, a quantity insufficient for the product to be considered a good source of this nutrient.

Argentina – The National Food Commission is dissolved, and ANMAT and SENASA will take over the mechanisms for updating the Argentine Food Code

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The government ordered the dissolution of the National Food Commission (CONAL in Spanish) and modified the control and updating regime of the Argentine Food Code (CAA in Spanish), according to Decree 538/2025. In this way, food management and control were centralized in the National Administration of Medicines, Food, and Medical Technology (ANMAT in Spanish) and the National Service for Agrifood Health and Quality (SENASA Spanish).

The Ministry of Health, through the National Administration of Medicines, Food, and Medical Technology (ANMAT ), and the Ministry of Economy, through the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries, by Joint Resolution, will keep the standards of the Argentine Food Code (CAA) up to date, resolving any modifications that may be necessary for its ongoing adaptation to advances in the field, taking as references international standards and agreements entered into within the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR in Spanish).

The government argues that CONAL’s collegial structure slowed down procedures and that technical agencies have sufficient capacity to take on the tasks of drafting, reviewing, and proposing regulatory changes.

Among its arguments, the Executive maintains that “the dissolution of CONAL does not imply a reduction in the protection of public health or in the quality and safety of food, but rather seeks to optimize decision-making processes by concentrating responsibilities in the entities that have the power of oversight and control.”

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Argentina – Authorities continue to modernize food regulation for international trade

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The Revenue and Customs Control Agency (ARCA in Spanish) has added Resolution General 5731/25, which incorporates the National Single Window Regime for Foreign Trade in Argentina (VUCEA in Spanish) to include the import notice and the import authorization for food products from the National Institute of Foods (INAL in Spanish) – National Administration of Medicines, Foods and Medical Technology (ANMAT in Spanish).

The Regulatory Decree 35/2025, which amended the Argentine Food Code, enabled the modernization of procedures related to the import and export of food, thereby facilitating trade and enhancing public health protection.

The implementation of this decree was carried out through ANMAT Disposition No. 537/2025, which established new guidelines for obtaining import notices and authorizations, adapting the system to the challenges of the global context and technological advancements.

Among the main achievements are the simplification of procedures, significantly reducing the time and administrative steps required to import or export food, the recognition of international standards, integrating high surveillance sanitary certifications from countries such as Australia, Canada, the European Union, and the United States, among others, as well as the guidelines of the Codex Alimentarius.