Global Regulations: Chile’s New Law for High Fat, Sugar, Salt Warnings

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Chile law to introduce warning statements on HFSS foods
PRESS RELEASE

Chile’s draft law on nutritional composition and advertising approved
in May will be the first in the world to set warning statements on
foods high in fat, sugar and salt (HFSS foods), international
regulatory expert has said.

EAS Regulatory Affairs Manager Ainhoa Larrañaga said that when it
becomes law mandatory warning statements such as ‘high in…’ will be
required in the labelling of HFSS foods.

Larrañaga also highlighted that the legislation has also expanded the
list of mandatory nutrition labelling to include saturated fats and
sugars alongside the energy, protein, carbohydrate and sodium
content.

She added that the country’s Ministry of Health is discussing nutrient
profiles to define these foods, with different nutrient thresholds
applying to categories of foods, and that the values that categorise
foods high in fat, sugar and salt could be confirmed this month.

“Although worldwide some countries such as Singapore, South Korea,
Thailand or countries of the European Union are applying new rules on
nutrition labelling be they voluntary or mandatory, Chile will be the
first in the region and the world to make warning statements on food
labels mandatory,” Larrañaga said. “Already in Peru a draft law which
will make warning statements on HFSS foods mandatory is being
discussed. So it will be interesting therefore to see the impact of
this law in Chile when implemented and across the Latin American
region.”

http://www.eas.eu/Press_Release/107

Chile’s new law “Nutritional Composition of Nutrients and Their
Advertising,” official in July, is the first in the world to require
label warning statements on foods high in fat, sugar, and salt,
reported Brussels-based regulatory consultant European Advisory
Services (EAS) Europe in a June press release.

Moreover, said EAS regulatory affairs manager Ainhoa Larrañaga in the
press release, the legislation also expands what must be listed on
nutrition labels. This list now includes saturated fats and sugars,
calories, protein, carbohydrates, and sodium content.

Larrañaga noted that the next step in implementing the regulation is
discussing nutrient profiles—identifying a food’s nutrient contents—
which Chile’s Ministry of Health is now doing to determine which
nutrient thresholds will be used to define foods high in fat, sugar,
and salt.

Who Will the Law Impact?

One wonders how such a regulation will affect foods imported into
Chile. Chile is said to have more bilateral or regional trade
agreements than any other country, boasting 59 such agreements
(although not all of them full free trade agreements) with such far-
flung trade blocs as the European Union and Mercosur (which includes
Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela) and such countries as China, India,
South Korea, and Mexico.

Chile deepened its long-standing commitment to trade liberalization
with the signing of a free trade agreement with the United States in
June 2003, which took effect in January 2004. Products from the United
States currently make up about 21% of the goods imported into Chile.

U.S. access to this market is competitive with Canada and the EU, both
of which already had existing free trade agreements with Chile. In
2008, U.S. farmers gained duty-free access to the Chilean market for
such important U.S. goods as pork products, beef products, soybeans
and soybean meal, durum wheat, feed grains, potatoes, and processed
food (e.g., French fries, pasta, distilled spirits, and breakfast
cereals).

According to trade group Food Export USA (Philadelphia), “Based on
size, market growth rate, and the U.S. competitive position in the
market, the following products have the greatest potential in Chile:
ingredients for…processed foods/bakery industries (e.g., dairy, soy,
meat, and poultry by-products, etc.)…as well as…snack foods/high-value
processed foods.”

That said, due to a slowing economy in Chile in 2009, U.S. exports to
Chile of “consumer-oriented food products dropped to $84.1 million,
which represented an almost 19% decrease from 2008,” said the group.

Still, according to Food Export USA, retail sales in Chile’s overall
packaged food market were estimated to rise to $7.7 billion in 2009.
“Historically, high-growth categories included snack bars, meal
replacement products, noodles…snack foods, confectionery, and chilled
processed foods,” it said.

By the year 2014, retail sales in the packaged food market in Chile
are expected to climb to $8.3 billion, which would bespeak a growth
rate of nearly 8%, or $601.6 million. Forecasted high-growth products
include pasta, ice cream, oils, and fats.

Which Foods Will the New Law Impact?

Foods high in fat, sugar, or salt will certainly be affected by the
law. Palm and coconut oils, for example, are both naturally very high
in saturated fat. According to EAS Europe, “[The regulation] will
apply to foods which exceed the limits to be set by the Ministry of
Health for saturated fat, trans fat, sugars, and sodium.”

But one can also foresee potential problems with this approach. “When
Denmark imposed its Fat Tax [in 2011], it only resulted in the Danes
traveling across the border for their fatty treats,” exclaims Kantha
Shelke, PhD, of Chicago-based nutrition think tank Corvus Blue.

And, “While [such a regulation] may seem to be a good way to protect
consumers from foods that could be harmful to their health, you can’t
simply lump all saturated fats, sugars, and other nutritional
components together as a class and legislate them,” says Jim Roza,
director of product development for Edison, NJ–based manufacturer
Reliance Private Label Supplements.

Also, fat, sugar, and salt content alone may not provide the full
picture of a food’s nutrition profile. Roza states, “It is true that
coconut oil is rich in saturated fat, but one of its primary
components is lauric acid, which has been shown to be beneficial for
the immune system. Similarly, sugars such as fructooligosaccharides
are important as a prebiotic but could be derided as a sugar because
of their molecular structure.”

And, while EAS Europe pointed out that the new law applies to foods
and beverages, not food supplements, how clear are the boundaries
between those products? As Roza says, “The distinction between foods,
beverages, and supplements is narrowing at a quick pace.”

Finally, although it is difficult to imagine a dietary supplement high
in salt, many food supplements in the sports nutrition and energy
enhancement areas are intentionally very high in protein or carbs. It
could be problematic if these categories of products were somehow
affected by the new law.

“High” according to What…and Whom?

Of course, which levels of fats, calories, or salt are to be
considered high have not yet been decided to a nicety.

“Standards for levels of fat and salt cannot be imposed with a flat
paint brush,” observes Shelke. “Food is a complex combination of
various nutrients and ingredients, and the level of fat and or salt in
any given food depends on the reason for the addition and the ultimate
purpose of the food. For example, salt is added to fish like cod and
to olives to preserve and flavor them, but the recipes that use these
ingredients typically make the necessary compensation for the added
salt so that the final food product is not exceptionally high in
salt.”

And who should oversee setting these standards? “Who will be the
arbiter of these fine points?” asks Roza. “The scientific community or
legislators? History has shown that when legislators set standards,
scientific common sense can easily be pushed aside.”

In an effort to predict some of the “How high is high” numbers, Ary
Bucione, DuPont’s regional regulatory officer in Cotia, Brazil, told
Nutritional Outlook that it’s likely that anything with more than the
following will be considered high: 200 kilo-cal/serving, 300 mg sodium/
serving, 18 g sugar/serving (including naturally occurring sugars) and
8 g/serving of added sugar, 3 g saturated fat/serving, and 0.3 g trans
fat/serving.

Think about what numbers like these could mean. By this rationale, one
cup of sweet potatoes (at 216 cal) would be considered high calorie!
So would the following: one cup of pinto beans (228 cal), one cup of
canned kidney beans (230 cal), and one whole avocado (380 cal)!

Will Quality and Taste Suffer?

Another thing to consider is how marketers may adjust their products
to fit the new law—and how those adjustments could affect acceptance
of the products themselves. “Prepared foods such as breads and
crackers, for example, are made with a lot more salt to compensate for
the mediocre functionality resulting from low protein flours and
shortcuts in processing,” says Shelke. “The reduction in sodium
content of breads will likely force the bread makers to use higher-
protein ingredients.”

She continues, “Taste is the number one factor influencing choice in
food shopping. If the low-sodium and low-fat foods don’t taste good,
shoppers will turn to other venues for their foods.”

Looking Forward

While Chile is the first country adopting this type of regulation,
it’s likely that it won’t be the last. “Although worldwide, some
countries such as Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, or countries of
the European Union are applying new rules on nutrition labeling—be
they voluntary or mandatory—Chile will be the first in the region and
the world to make warning statements on food labels mandatory,” said
Larrañaga in EAS’s press release. “Already in Peru, a draft law, which
will make warning statements on HFSS [high fat, sugar, salt] foods
mandatory, is being discussed. So it will be interesting therefore to
see the impact of this law in Chile when implemented and across the
Latin American region.”

As for the impact on U.S. manufacturers of foods and beverages,
DuPont’s Bucione notes: “Importers will have to meet the new
regulation, either labeling in the country of origin or doing it
themselves in country before making the foods available for consumers.
Repacking might be avoided by supplementary labeling on the original
packaging when physically possible.”

At the end of the day, will Chile’s new law hurt food and beverage
manufacturers and scare away consumers?

“That remains to be seen,” Jim Roza concludes. “If we use the United
States as an example, although certain foods are being ‘stigmatized’
as a result of their caloric content by new local labeling
requirements that mandate calorie disclosure, we haven’t seen a
drastic reduction in their consumption.”

Andrew Weil, MD, had a similar viewpoint in an interview with
Nutritional Outlook: “All I can tell you about impact on consumers and
the market is that new regulations in the United States requiring
restaurant chains to post calorie counts and nutritional information
on foods, including fast foods, have not changed sales or reduced
consumption of foods and beverages that are highest in fat, sugar, and
sodium.”

DuPont’s Bucione agrees with Weil, noting, “Consumers are free to
choose what they want to buy.”

The bottom line is that if consumers want to buy such products, they
will—whether it be in Chile or elsewhere. “This is not the first time
that regulators have tried to reduce fat and salt in prepared foods in
the retail channels,” observes Shelke. “Such efforts have never really
amounted to a tangible difference because people get most of their
sodium and fat at home and in restaurants.”

That said, Weil adds, the regulation’s publicity against fat, sugar,
and salt could pressure food and beverage companies to decrease the
presence of these ingredients in their formulas. “Publicity about
negative health effects of trans fats and bans on them—in New York
City, for instance—have forced manufacturers to reformulate some
products.”

http://www.nutritionaloutlook.com/article/global-regulations-chile%E2%80%99s-new-law-high-fat-sugar-salt-warnings-3-10233