File photo used for representational purposes only | Photo: REUTERS
Packaged food and drinks should have easy-to-read nutrition information on the front of products to help consumers make healthier choices, according to the first-ever World Health Organization draft guidelines that do not recommend harsher warning labels.
Increased consumption of processed foods high in salt, sugar and fat is a key driver of the global obesity crisis, with more than one billion people living with the condition and an estimated eight million early deaths each year due to related health problems such as diabetes and heart disease disease problems, WHO data show.
Yet governments are struggling to introduce policies to contain the epidemic.
Currently, only 43 WHO member states have any type of front-of-pack labelling, either mandatory or voluntary, the UN agency said Reutersdespite evidence showing that labels can influence purchasing behavior.
The WHO began work on the previously unreported draft guidelines in 2019. They aim to “support consumers in making healthier food-related decisions,” Catherine Engelhardt, a scientist in the Department of Nutrition and food safety of the WHO, said Reuters by email.
Public consultation on the guidelines ended on 11 October and the finalized version will be released in early 2025.
WHO guidance recommends that governments implement “interpretative” labels that include nutritional information and some explanation of what this means for the healthfulness of a product.
An example of this is the NutriScore, developed in France and used in a number of European countries, which ranks food from A (green, containing essential nutrients) to E (red, containing high levels of added salts, sugars, fat or calories).
Chile and several other Latin American countries use a stricter system with warnings that a food is “high in sugar”, salt or fat on the front of the package, in a black octagon that looks like a “Stop” sign.
Food labeling expert Lindsay Smith Tayley, co-director of the Global Food Research Program at the University of North Carolina’s Chapel Hill, said the food industry has resisted the warnings and is in favor of “non-interpretive” labels that include information on nutrients, but there is no guide to what that means like those used in the United States. This week, US Senator Bernie Sanders announced plans to hold a Senate hearing on stricter food labeling in December.
While the WHO recommendation goes a step further than industry preferences, it is “pretty weak,” Tiley said.
“The most important thing for most countries globally will be to limit excessive intake of added sugars, sodium, saturated fat and ultra-processed foods in general – that’s what warning labels do best.”
A study this summer by Taillie showed that Chile’s warning labels, along with other policies such as marketing restrictions to children, meant Chileans bought 37% less sugar, 22% less sodium, 16% less saturated fat and 23% fewer total calories compared to those if the law had not been implemented.
The WHO said there was insufficient evidence to determine the best labeling system.
The International Food and Drink Alliance, whose members include The Coca Cola Company and Mondelez International Inc, said its members now have global minimum standards globally. These include a back-of-pack listing of nutrients as well as front-of-pack details of at least energy content, where possible, in accordance with the international Codex Alimentarius system.
“It’s something that global companies can do, but obviously it’s not enough because if you take Nigeria or Pakistan … the market is dominated by local manufacturers,” said Rocco Renaldi, IFBA secretary general. He said alliance members generally support the WHO guidelines and nutrient-based labels.
“But the devil is in the details – generally speaking, we don’t support approaches that demonize specific products,” he said. “We do not believe that health warning labels apply to food products that are considered safe, approved in the market and loved by consumers.”
Published – October 18, 2024, 4:53 PM IST
