Comprensión Regulatoria Frente al Etiquetado de Alimentos Ultraprocesados en Latinoamérica

Abstract

This article seeks to generate comparison frameworks against the state of the nutritional labeling law in Latin American countries such as: Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina, analyzing their regulatory contributions and their implications in consumer education. Based on the importance that ultra-processed foods have for current diets, these foods are known for the change that alters their natural state that ends up being something industrial that affects the health of the consumer. In this way, it is important to maintain a regulation of the consumption of these foods, since they produce non-communicable diseases such as overweight and obesity in the population.

Within this legislation in the Latin American environment, the labeling law began to be visible since 2019 in countries such as Mexico where the law has had a great impact since it is the largest consumer of this type of food, this law includes ingredients, table and five (5) warning labels, Chile was the first country to adopt warning labels to identify ultra and highly processed foods, high in added sugars, sodium and saturated fats, Brazil generated legislation with restrictions on marketing and promotion in school environments and finally Colombia where the labeling law after a long process of approval and debates that began in 2019, and was finally approved in May 2021 for its adoption and mandatory, is currently in the process of implementation.