Pretty much every country in the world now has an obesity
crisis. But no one’s really figured out what to do about it. One of the most avant-garde obesity policy experiments is
happening in Chile, where health officials are trying to revolutionize
nutrition labeling. Instead of cramming percentages and numbers onto the back
of food packages, the Chilean government now requires symbol-based warning
labels on the front of food products that contain high levels of salt, sugar,
calories, and saturated fat.
Canada, where 26 percent of adults have obesity, has taken
notice. It’s now on the cusp of becoming the second high-income country to
adopt a similar warning system. Meanwhile, Mexico, which has called overweight,
obesity, and diabetes public health emergencies, is also considering following
Chile’s lead, but these new approaches in Mexico and Canada may never see
the light of day if the American trade representatives get their way.
Welcome to the opaque — and somewhat surprising —
intersection of obesity and the North American Free Trade Agreement
renegotiation.
According to a leaked document, US trade
representatives are seeking to override national food labeling policies in
Mexico, Canada — as well as in the US — through the NAFTA renegotiation.
Specifically, the US is proposing a provision about packaged
food and non-alcoholic beverages that suggests that countries involved in the
trade deal should not adopt front-of-package symbol warnings that
“inappropriately denotes that a hazard exists from consumption of the food or
non-alcoholic beverages.” The New York Times first reported on the provision
Tuesday
On Wednesday, in a House Ways and Means Committee meeting
about America’s trade agenda, the United States Trade Representative Robert
Lighthizer, confirmed that he is indeed pursuing this provision, arguing that
national food labeling policies are “protectionist.”
But public health researchers and concerned lawmakers like
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Tex) see the provision another way: as a threat to the
battle against obesity.
I can see both sides of this idea to create different indicators to show people whether or not foods have different amounts of sugar, salt, etc. I think that having signs can show people the dangers of the foods easier than written labels which may deter some buying of high concentration of ingredients in foods, but I also think it is sad that the world is coming to the point where we see pictures of things that represent values instead of just taking the time to read information. Another idea I have is that a large majority of people do not care too much what the nutrition label says on the back and people will buy products based on what they like. If anything helps buyers choose healthier food, it is the advertising for low fat/low cholesterol "stamp" on the front of the product. This could be a waste of time, but it could also help separate the healthier versions of foods from their not as healthy competitor foods.
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