When ultra-processed food costs more, it is associated with lower prevalence of overweight and obesity in Brazil, suggesting taxes could be an effective tool to fight obesity, argue the authors of a recent study.
Mexico's nutrition label is once again on path to enter into force as a court revokes the decision to provisionally suspend it, although industry says it will continue to oppose the regulation using "all legal means".
A judge has temporarily suspended Mexico’s front-of-pack warning label following a request lodged by business lobbies on the grounds it was not widely consulted or based on scientific evidence.
The Colombian government and food industry have agreed on warning nutrition labels that will become mandatory on unhealthy food and drink products sold in the country.
Sales of sugary drinks in Chile have plunged by almost one quarter (23.7%) after its raft of obesity-reducing strategies came into effect, according to a recent observational study.
From Brazil's food guidelines - and its advice to avoid 'ultra-processed' foods - to the influence of social media, a number of factors are converging to help make the country's food healthier and nutrition-based, says one expert.
Stevia supplier PureCircle has unveiled a new management team following a probe into accounting irregularities that has delayed the publication of its full-year results and prompted a suspension of its shares.
Mexican food manufacturer Kua Foods, which has a mixed portfolio ranging from healthy smoothie mixes to candy, is following Mexico's nutrition label developments carefully. "We’re not worried, just waiting to see," says its business manager....
Sodium intake in Peru may be more than double WHO recommended limits and campaigns to reduce this should focus on mothers - the primary decision-makers for food purchases and meal planning, according to recent research.
Soluble corn fiber can reduce the sugar content in chocolate by up to 50% while retaining similar levels of sweetness and leaving no aftertaste, according to a recently published patent by Mondelēz International.
Scientists have developed a new milk chocolate formulation that contains almost half the sugar of a standard milk chocolate recipe while also delivering a ‘similar consumer liking score’ in sensory testing.
Brazilian food regulatory agency ANVISA has announced a 2% limit on industrial trans fats in all food and drink products and total ban on partially hydrogenated oils by 2023.
As the stevia sweetener producer works towards the commercialization of stevia-based protein and fiber ingredients in 2020, we caught up with Alina Slotnik, Vice President of Global Marketing at PureCircle to find out more about its latest developments.
Global ingredient provider, Ingredion, has opened its new manufacturing facility in Mexico, to produce allulose, the first of its kind for the company in the region.
Fewer sugary breakfast cereals are using child-targeted marketing tactics since Chile’s strict food regulation, while healthier cereals are adding fun characters to their products, according to recent research.
Panama passed a new law this week that creates a national health improvement action plan and increases taxes on the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages.
The United Nations urges governments to implement multifaceted actions to stop the increase in both hunger and obesity in Latin America and the Caribbean, it reveals in its latest report on the Panorama of Food and Nutritional Security in LATAM.
Research following the implementation of the Food-Labeling and Advertising Law in Chile showed a substantial reduction in the availability of competitive food and beverages sold in school kiosks.
Mexican Federal Consumer Office Profeco has named and shamed some table-top stevia sweetener brands for containing sugar, some of which were undeclared.
Foods ultra-processed in nature, sugary drinks and fast food are all associated with poor nourishment qualities that are replacing domestic nutritional alternatives in diets throughout LATAM and the Caribbean, a new report by PAHO states.
From creating amaranth and cactus snacks to supporting nutrition labels in Latin America, PepsiCo is listening to consumer demands for healthy products and clear nutrition information, according to Ricardo Pimenta, vice president of nutrition at PepsiCo...
New research shows many infants (between 6 and 12 months) who are transitioning off of breast milk are regularly receiving "ultra-processed" foods as some of their first introduction to solid foods.
By encouraging unhealthy food purchases, supermarkets are worsening Latin America’s childhood obesity crisis – but certain strategies can help both public health and retailer profits, according to a recent UNICEF report.
The Mercosur parliament will study a draft bill proposing harmonized front-of-pack nutrition labeling and other measures to halt rising obesity rates in the bloc.
President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador of Mexico announced plans for an unprecedented nutrition information campaign to counter Mexico’s alarming health epidemic.
From sugar reduction to fiber fortification, LATAM manufacturers are increasingly under pressure to make their products healthier. We caught up with some suppliers at this year's Food Tech Summit in Mexico City to find out more.
Underdiagnosis, insufficient intervention methods, the prevalence of diabetes and a lack of contemporary primary care approaches to nutrition and weight, are causing an obesity crisis in Mexico, a recent study reveals.
The United Nations has awarded Peru’s Ministry of Health for its “outstanding contribution” to preventing non-communicable diseases through its mandatory nutrition warning label.
Brazil's proposed warning nutrient label will not encourage manufacturers to make their products healthier, ABIA’s president has said - but ingredient suppliers are gearing up for the reformulation opportunity.
Regulatory authority ANVISA has revealed the front-of-pack nutrition warning it has chosen for Brazil, and is calling for comments through a public consultation.
Trans fats may be present in almost 20% of Brazilian packaged foods and beverages, despite most of them not reporting the presence of the controversial ingredient in the ingredient deck or on the nutrition facts panel, says a new study.
Adding baru nuts to the diet may increase the activity of the antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in overweight and obese Brazilian women, says a new study.
How can you get kids to eat their veggies and whole grains without a battle? According to researchers, clearly communicating a food's nutrition benefits to children through affirming statements will help kids make healthy food decisions on their...
Brazilian juice giant Citrosuco will commercialize a novel process that uses non-GM enzymes to cut the sugar in orange juice, achieving up to 80% reductions.
Mexico's Health Commission has approved a draft proposal to bring in front-of-pack nutrition warning labels and mandatory fortification in a bid to tackle obesity and malnutrition in the country.
Latin American government officials met in Mexico City this week to develop a regional road map to remove trans fats from food. We round up some of the region's regulatory action.
Efforts to eradicate hunger and malnutrition across Latin America and the Caribbean have stagnated in recent years and need renewed political will to reignite progress, say FAO executives.
Costa Rican food manufacturers are meeting national voluntary salt reduction targets for processed food, according to a survey carried for the Ministry of Health.
Mexico’s sugar tax is hitting poor people, increasing inequality and failing to tackle obesity, says the country’s soft drink group ANPRAC – but a recent academic paper suggests even regressive sugar taxes are still “socially desirable”.
Latin American and Caribbean countries are the biggest consumers of sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juices in the world, according to a recent study.
As of today (June 17), all processed food and drink products sold in Peru must carry a 'stop sign' warning label if they are high in salt, sugar and saturated fat, or contain trans fat.
Nestlé Brazil has launched a sugar calculator that shows the percentage a given product contributes to their daily recommended sugar intake, offering consumers 'critical insight" for "more conscious choices", it says.
Sweet Green Fields has launched a patent-pending taste modulator derived from the stevia leaf that increases the perceived sweetness of high-intensity sweeteners.
Family farming is crucial to fighting the double burden of obesity and malnutrition, a "complex nutrition problem" present in Latin America, according to the FAO director-general, José Graziano da Silva.
Children in Costa Rica are exposed to "an overabundance" of unhealthy food marketing on television with over 90% of adverts against World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, prompting calls for restrictions.
