Should packaged food content be labelled? | Explained

What does the report published by the Access to Nutrition Initiative state? How does a health star rating system work? Why have non-communicable diseases become so common in India? Can front-of-pack labelling help?

The story so far: A new report published by Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNi) a non-profit global foundation, has found that leading food and beverage (F&B) companies, on average, sell products that are less healthy in low-and-middle income countries (LMICs) compared to what they sell in high-income countries (HICs). This report, which is the fifth edition of the ‘Global Access to Nutrition Index’, states that it assessed 30 of the world’s largest F&B manufacturers — 23% of the global F&B market — on their performance to improve access to nutritious foods.

Also Read: Food packaging should have labels on front about health impact, says WHO

What were the report’s findings?

The report analysed 52,414 products — including those from popular brands such as Nestle, Pepsico, Unilever, Coca-Cola and Hershey among others — using a health star rating system.

Under this system products are ranked out of 5 on their healthiness, with 5 being the best, and a score above 3.5 considered to be a healthier choice. The system assesses components of food considered to increase risk (energy, saturated fat, total sugars and sodium) and offsets these against components considered to decrease risk (protein, fibre and fruit, vegetable, nut and legume) to calculate a final score that is converted to a star rating. The ATNi report found that ‘portfolio healthiness’ was found to be lowest in LMICs, highlighting disparities in products offered across different markets. Food product healthiness in LMICs scored much lower — 1.8 on the system — than in HICs where it scored 2.3. Only 30% of companies have demonstrated a strategy to price some of their ‘healthier’ products affordably for lower income consumers, the report found. It also found that in LMICs, micronutrient data were available for a smaller proportion of products as compared to those in HICs.

Is this the first time?

This is not the first instance of such a finding: in April this year, a report by Swiss NGO, Public Eye and the global coalition International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN), found that Nestle’s baby food products sold in India as well as in African and Latin American countries, had higher sugar content compared to the same products sold in European markets. While Nestle denied this, the Central government asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to initiate “appropriate action” against Nestle.

Why is this of significance in India?

India is staring at a Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) burden of epic proportions — an estimated 10.13 crore Indians have diabetes, and as per National Family Health Survey 5 data, obesity stands at 24% among women and 23% among men. At the same time, undernutrition, anaemia and micronutrient deficiencies continue to remain pressing problems.

A large chunk of the NCD burden, experts say, has to do with diets changing over the past few decades and becoming unhealthier. Citing the Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) dietary guidelines, published in April this year, the Economic Survey of India 2023-24 noted that 56.4% of the total disease burden in India is due to unhealthy diets. The ICMR report had said the upsurge in the consumption of highly processed foods, laden with sugars and fat, coupled with reduced physical activity and limited access to diverse foods, exacerbate micronutrient deficiencies and overweight/obesity problems.

Another significant issue here is affordability: as per UN data over 50% of Indians cannot afford a healthy diet. At the same time, Indian government data reveals that households’ expenditure on processed food as a proportion of their food expenditure has risen, says development economist Dipa Sinha.

What about food package labelling?

India is a party to the World Health Assembly (WHA) resolutions, one of which is a resolution on marketing of foods and non-alcoholic beverages to children, highlighting the need to protect children from harmful marketing of junk foods. In 2017, India launched the National Multisectoral Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Common NCDs, 2017-22 (NMAP). However, there has been very little progress made to address front-of-pack labelling of food.

Activists have, for years, been pushing the government to bring in regulations for front-of-package labelling of foods that would indicate high sugar, fat and sodium content. A draft notification: Food Safety and Standards (Labelling & Display) Amendment Regulation 2022 was brought in, but has made no headway in two years, says Arun Gupta, convener, Nutrition Advocacy for Public Interest (NAPi). Studies have shown, Dr. Gupta points out, that labelling on the front of packaged food is effective: in Chile and Mexico for instance, the consumption of sugary beverages decreased after such mandatory labelling. He adds that warning labels are found to have worked best, compared to other labelling systems such as star ratings.

An analysis by NAPi of 43 advertisements of pre-packaged food products and their composition revealed that these foods were high in one or more nutrients of concern such as saturated fat etc.

“Policymakers and governments should introduce mandatory policies. To date, voluntary efforts by companies have been insufficient to ensure widespread and strong nutrition-related performance,” the ATNi report states.

Published - November 21, 2024 08:30 am IST