Articles

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Article – Monitoring health and nutrition claims on food labels in Brazil

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Introduction: The monitoring of nutrition and health claims on food and beverage labels has been proposed by international and national organizations because it can collaborate with the development of public policies to regulate food labeling and marketing strategies. One way of carrying out this monitoring is by using data collected by private companies.

Objective: To compare information on nutrition and health claims available in a commercial database of a private company that monitors the launch of new foods and beverages in Brazilian food retailers with information on those same claims manually coded by trained research assistants.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional observational study using a data sample of newly launched food and beverages available at a commercial database from 2018 to 2021. We compared the information on health and nutrition claims available on the commercial dataset with reliable information on the same nutrition and health claims manually coded by trained research assistants using a tested taxonomy to classify such claims. We used Gwet’s Kappa AC1 with 95% CI and percentage agreement to compare both data sources and calculated sensitivity and specificity of the compared data.

Results: A total of 6,722 foods and beverages were analyzed. Mintel-GNPD presented 36.28% (n = 2,439) of nutrition claims, while in the trained researchers’ coding, it was 33.73% (n = 2,267). We found a prevalence of 5.4% (n = 362) for health claims in Mintel-GNPD and 10.8% (n = 723) in the researchers’ coding. All subcategories of nutrition and health claims showed high agreement (Kappa >0.81). Health claims presented kappa = 0.89 with 33.7% sensitivity and 98.0% specificity while nutrition claims showed kappa = 0.86 with 92.9% sensitivity and 92.5% specificity.

Conclusion: Nutrition and health claims showed high agreement, with great results in nutrition claims, indicating that Mintel-GPND is suitable for monitoring such claims on food and beverage packaging in Brazil. Additionally, our findings show a high prevalence of nutrition and health claims on food packages launched in the Brazilian food retail, highlighting the need to monitor these to develop public policies to regulate food marketing on packaging in Brazil.

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

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Article – Ten Criteria for an Educational Approach to the Law for the Promotion of Healthy Eating in Argentina

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This paper proposes ten educational criteria to work on the Act for the Promotion of Healthy Eating in Chemistry classes (and other subjects) from a Human Rights perspective in order to promote critical attitudes towards food. The criteria were developed from an investigative and exploratory work on the implementation of the Act in supermarket shelves, the representations of people and the review of the manuals that establish its implementation. Throughout the article, different situations will be presented where the contributions of food science and technology in the implementation of the Act can be understood.

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

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Article – Front-of-pack food labeling as opposed to trademark law

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The new Law for the Promotion of Healthy Eating (Law 27.642) enacted in Argentina contains provisions that imply a direct restriction on the exercise of the right to use duly registered trademarks, mainly based on the protection of consumer health. This question generates a clear tension between these rights, whose analysis is very useful in order to provide clarity to the panorama resulting from the enactment of the Law, a panorama that has great implications for the commercial activity carried out in our country by companies associated with the food industry. The present work will analyze the regulatory conflict raised and will seek to answer how it should be resolved according to the current laws, doctrine and jurisprudence in Argentina and in the international framework.

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Article – Brazilian Front-of-Package Labeling: A Product Compliance Analysis 12 Months after Implementation of Regulations

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This study investigated the presence of front-of-package labeling on food products in major retailers in Brazil after its implementation in 2022. Carried out from May to October 2023, we analyzed 2145 products of brands present in five Brazilian states. A total of 541 products presented front-of-package warnings. The categories varied in their adherence to front-of-package labeling, highlighting a prevalence of combined warnings, such as high in added sugar and high in saturated fat on sweet biscuits and chocolates. Sausages showed a high prevalence of high in sodium and high in saturated fat warnings. Beverages stood out as high in added sugar, while fats, dairy products, frozen preparations, seasonings, and sauces presented diversity in the warnings. Other products, such as panettone, showed a high presence of alerts. The study demonstrated the widespread presence of front-of-package labeling on ultra-processed products highly consumed by the Brazilian population. Considering the alarming presence of these foods in the Brazilian diet, it is concluded that front-of-package nutrition labeling is crucial to inform and raise awareness among consumers, allowing healthier choices and potentially contributing to a reduction in chronic diseases and the costs associated with treatment in the health system.

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

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Article – Analysis of the arguments received in the public consultation for the Mexican front warning labeling

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Objective. To analyze the different elements of the arguments received during the public consultation of the Modification Project to the Official Mexican Standard-051 (NOM-051), emphasizing the protection of children and adolescents. Materials and methods. The information provided in 1 095 arguments was analyzed. Key actors were identified, and a content analysis was carried out to identify if the position was in favor or against the numerals related to the protection of children and adolescents. The analysis
was done using NVivo software. Results. 781 key players were identified. During the public consultation, four private sector tactics were identified to interfere in the NOM-051 process: a) front groups that sent comments against NOM- 051; b) questions about the scientific evidence on the relationship between consumption of sweeteners and obesity in schoolchildren; c) questions about the effectiveness of the
use of warning labeling for sweeteners; d) comments aboutcindividual responsibility individuals responsible for their disease. Conclusion. The interference of the private sector in the NOM-051 implementation process was evident in the comments submitted during the public consultation.

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

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