Abstract: This article analyzes how certain rights enshrined in Argentina’s Constitution may play a role in supporting the implementation of Food Sovereignty in a national space. First, the article describes the main elements of Food Sovereignty and the ambiguous situation of law in the movement. After describing Argentina’s constitutional system, with special reference to social rights, the article links every main element of Food Sovereignty with one or more constitutional rights that could serve as a defense against policies detrimental to Food Sovereignty or as an instrument to promote or protect the implementation of this new food system.
Article – Food additives added to packaged or canned foods in Mexico, reliable information?
Introduction: Food additives (AA) are ingredients that are added to foods to modify their physical and chemical characteristics. Approximately 1,000 AA are used under the “Generally Recognized as Safe” designation without approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. There is evidence that some AA can be potentially toxic to health. The person in charge of regulating AA worldwide is the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization, through the Codex Alimentarius Commission. However, in Mexico there are no studies on the toxicity of AA in the population, given the impossibility of estimating its consumption taking the “Admissible Daily Intake” as a reference (IDA).
Article – Sugar in ultraprocessed foods in Latin American capitals: From dentistry perspective
Introduction
High sugar consumption is associated with dental caries. The objective of this study was to determine the concentrations of sugar and other nutrients in sweetened, ultraprocessed foods from Bogotá, Lima, and Quito.
Methods
A descriptive study was conducted in which information was collected on the concentration of total sugars and other nutrients from a nutrition table of ultraprocessed foods with a sweet taste from the primary chain supermarkets in Bogotá, Lima, and Quito. The groups of registered foods were non-carbonated and carbonated drinks, nectar and fruit juices, fermented dairy products, other milk-based drinks, compotes, breakfast cereals, bakery products, confectionery, desserts, dried fruits and nut candies, and flavored powder. Descriptive analyses were conducted to determine the measures of central tendency.
Results
In the present study, information was collected on 1830 products. A median total sugar content of 11.0 (7.0–17.0) grams/portion was identified in sweetened foods from Bogotá, while the median was 10.3 (6.0–14.7) in Lima and 9.0 (5.0–15.00) in Quito. Approximately 80% of foods from Bogotá and approximately 70% of foods from Lima and Quito exceed the maximum sugar concentration established in the resolutions passed by each country, which state the parameters and ranges to determine whether food is high in sugar. In addition, most of the registered foods in this study have a nonexistent or extremely low content of fiber, proteins, vitamins, and minerals.
Conclusions
A high percentage of foods with high sugar concentrations were found in Bogotá, Lima, and Quito, contributing to the risk of dental caries. This highlights the importance of odontologists educating patients on the proper selection of foods.
Argentina – Thursday, February 16 is the deadline to bring food labeling into compliance with the labeling law
Less than a week is left for the expiration of the extension requested by large companies to comply with the law on front labeling of food and beverages, which seeks to warn the population on food packaging of excessive components that may be harmful to health, such as sugars, sodium and saturated fats, among others. The regulation was approved in October 2021 and most companies requested extensions to comply, which expire on February 16.
USA – Proposed Updates to the School Nutrition Standards
Based on the latest nutrition science and extensive feedback from our school meal partners, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service is proposing updates to the school nutrition standards in a few key areas to give kids the right balance of nutrients for healthy and appealing meals. The proposed updates reflect the most recent Dietary Guidelines, as required by law, and build in plenty of time for planning and implementation to ensure the school meals community and the kids they serve have the best chance for long-term success.
This proposed rule – Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent with the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans – is the next step in an ongoing effort toward healthier school meals that USDA and the broader school meals community have been partnering on for well over a decade.
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