Food Labeling In Mexico
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Food labeling in Mexico refers to the official regulations requiring labels on
processed food Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or of one form of food into other forms. Food processing takes many forms, from grinding grain into raw flour, home cooking, and complex industrial methods used in the mak ...
s sold within the country to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions based on nutritional criteria. Approved in 2010 under the (NOM) (often shortened to NOM-051), the system includes Daily Dietary Guidelines (Spanish abbreviation: GDA). These guidelines focus on the total amounts of
saturated fats A saturated fat is a type of fat in which the fatty acid chains have all single bonds between the carbon atoms. A fat known as a glyceride is made of two kinds of smaller molecules: a short glycerol backbone, and fatty acids that each contai ...
,
fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specif ...
s,
sodium Sodium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Na (from Neo-Latin ) and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 element, group 1 of the peri ...
,
sugars Sugar is the generic name for Sweetness, sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides ...
, and
energy Energy () is the physical quantity, quantitative physical property, property that is transferred to a physical body, body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of Work (thermodynamics), work and in the form of heat and l ...
(
kilocalories The calorie is a unit of energy that originated from the caloric theory of heat. The large calorie, food calorie, dietary calorie, kilocalorie, or kilogram calorie is defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one liter o ...
) per package, the percentage they represent per serving, and their contribution to the daily recommended intake. After its implementation, several studies assessed the effectiveness of the system. The results indicated that most respondents were unaware of the recommended intake levels, struggled to understand the meaning of the values provided by the system, and did not use the system when shopping. Additionally, most undergraduate nutrition students could not interpret the system correctly when questioned. In response, the
Secretariat of Health The Secretariat of Health ( Spanish: ''Secretaría de Salud'') is the government department in charge of all social health services in Mexico, and an integral part of the Mexican health system. The Secretary of Health is a member of the Executive ...
looked for alternatives to the system. In 2016, Chile published a simplified food labeling system, which inspired the creation of a similar system for Mexico. In 2020, the system was revised and updated with the Food and Beverage Front-of-Package Labeling System (Spanish abbreviation: SEFAB), developed and implemented by the (INSP). By the end of the year, labeling standards were applied to 85% of food products consumed in Mexico, one of the most obese countries in the world. One year after its implementation, studies found the system had an insignificant impact on sales. However, many companies still adjusted their formulas to reduce risk factor levels.


Development


Background

The influx of foreign food industry capital since the 1980s, coupled with the implementation of the
North American Free Trade Agreement The North American Free Trade Agreement (, TLCAN; , ALÉNA), referred to colloquially in the Anglosphere as NAFTA, ( ) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that created a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The ...
(NAFTA) in 1994, led to a sharp rise in the import of
processed foods Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or of one form of food into other forms. Food processing takes many forms, from grinding grain into raw flour, home cooking, and complex industrial methods used in the mak ...
into Mexico. These changes triggered an irreversible shift in the country's eating habits and a dramatic increase in
obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...
rates. In the 1980s, these rates were just 7%. Since then, Mexico has become the leading consumer of processed foods in Latin America and the fourth-largest worldwide, as of 2017.


First front-of-package labeling system

In 2010, the
Secretariat of Health The Secretariat of Health ( Spanish: ''Secretaría de Salud'') is the government department in charge of all social health services in Mexico, and an integral part of the Mexican health system. The Secretary of Health is a member of the Executive ...
(SALUD) requested the establishment of a food labeling norm. After its approval, it was designed as NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010 under the
Norma Oficial Mexicana The Norma Oficial Mexicana (Official Mexican Standard), abbreviated NOM, is the name of each of a series of official, compulsory standards and regulations for diverse activities in Mexico. They are more commonly referred to as ''NOMs'' or ''normas ...
(NOM) standards. The system, called Daily Dietary Guidelines (Spanish: or GDA), was based on the total amount of
saturated fats A saturated fat is a type of fat in which the fatty acid chains have all single bonds between the carbon atoms. A fat known as a glyceride is made of two kinds of smaller molecules: a short glycerol backbone, and fatty acids that each contai ...
(),
fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specif ...
s (),
sodium Sodium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Na (from Neo-Latin ) and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 element, group 1 of the peri ...
(),
sugars Sugar is the generic name for Sweetness, sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides ...
() and
energy Energy () is the physical quantity, quantitative physical property, property that is transferred to a physical body, body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of Work (thermodynamics), work and in the form of heat and l ...
() represented in
kilocalories The calorie is a unit of energy that originated from the caloric theory of heat. The large calorie, food calorie, dietary calorie, kilocalorie, or kilogram calorie is defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one liter o ...
per package. It also indicated the percentage these amounts represented per serving and their contribution to daily recommended intake. The (INSP) began investigating the effectiveness of the labeling system in 2011. Their findings showed that it was largely ineffective, as most nutrition students were unable to interpret it correctly. In 2016, the National Health and Nutrition Survey (Spanish: ) included questions about understanding the GDA food labeling system. The results revealed poor comprehension nationwide. The INSP reported that 97.6% of respondents were unaware of the appropriate calorie intake values for children aged 10 to 12, over 90% did not know the recommended daily calorie intake for adults, and 66.4% never used the GDA system to inform their purchases. Additionally, a survey conducted by INSP and the
University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a Public university, public research university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to uptown Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also op ...
found that only 6% of adults understood the GDA system. In 2013, the
federal government of Mexico The Federal government of Mexico (alternately known as the Government of the Republic or ' or ') is the national government of the Mexico, United Mexican States, the central government established by its constitution to share sovereignty over the ...
launched the 2013 National Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Overweight, Obesity and Diabetes (Spanish: ), a set of measures aimed at addressing the obesity crisis and chronic
non-communicable disease A non-communicable disease (NCD) is a disease that is not transmission (medicine), transmissible directly from one person to another. NCDs include Parkinson's disease, autoimmune diseases, strokes, heart diseases, cancers, Diabetes mellitus, diab ...
s such as
hypertension Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a Chronic condition, long-term Disease, medical condition in which the blood pressure in the artery, arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms i ...
,
diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...
, and
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
. The strategy highlighted that the current levels of overweight and obesity in Mexico posed a significant threat to the sustainability of the healthcare system, due to their link to non-communicable diseases and the high costs associated with specialized care. Statistics showed that 42.6% of men over 20 were overweight, and 26.8% were obese. Among women, 35.5% were overweight and 37.5% were obese. By 2018, 75% of adults were either overweight or obese.


Second front-of-package labeling system

In 2016, the
government of Chile Chile's government is a Representative democracy, representative democratic republic, in which the President of Chile serves as both head of state and head of government, within a formal multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by th ...
enacted the Food Labeling and Advertising Law, which introduced simplified and prominent
warning label A warning label is a label attached to a product, or contained in a product's instruction manual, warning the user about risks associated with its use, and may include restrictions by the manufacturer or seller on certain uses. Some of them ...
s to indicate excess calories, added nutrients and
additives Additive may refer to: Mathematics * Additive function, a function in number theory * Additive map, a function that preserves the addition operation * Additive set-function see Sigma additivity * Additive category, a preadditive category with fin ...
linked to non-communicable diseases. Inspired by this system, the INSP formed a committee of national academic experts to develop a new regulation for front-of-package labeling of food and non-alcoholic beverages. The
Secretariat of Economy In Mexico, the Secretariat of the Economy (Spanish Language, Spanish: ''Secretaría de Economía''; abbreviated "SE") is the Ministry (government department), government department in charge of matters related to the economy. The Secretary of th ...
(SE) and the
Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risk The Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks (in Spanish, Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios, Cofepris) is a regulatory body of the Mexican government. It is a decentralized organ of (and supervised by) ...
organized working groups, resulting in a draft standard submitted for public consultation, from 11 October to 10 December 2019 gathering 5,200 comments. Simultaneously, civil society organizations, including the (Alliance for Food Health), launched a public campaign to inform the population about these efforts. On 29 October 2019, reforms and additions to the Mexican General Health Law were approved, including the new front-of-package labeling model. On 27 March 2020, the
Official Journal of the Federation The (DOF; translated variously as the ''Official Journal of the Federation'' or else as ''Official Gazette of the Federation''), published daily by the government of Mexico, is the main official government publication in Mexico. It was establ ...
published updates to the norm NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010, stipulating that all food and non-alcoholic beverage packaging and containers must display the approved seals. The law was divided into three phases: the first consisted of the introduction of front-of-pack labeling; the second, which began on 1 June 2021, required companies to comply with additional transparency and protection measures alongside the labeling. The third phase, scheduled for implementation on 1 January 2026, stipulates that complementary information must be incorporated into the provisions outlined in NOM-051. The calculation and evaluation of complementary nutritional information refers to the following: For phases one and two, if added sugars were included to a product, sugars and calories had to be evaluated; if fats were added, saturated fats, trans fats, and calories had to be evaluated; if sodium was added, only sodium had to be evaluated. In contrast, for phase three, if any critical nutrient is added to a product, a full reevaluation of the formula will be conducted.


Labels

The labels implemented are black octagons with white letters, designed to simply inform consumers about high amounts of sugars, energy,
trans fats Trans fat is a type of unsaturated fat that occurs in foods. Small amounts of trans fats occur naturally, but large amounts are found in some processed foods made with partially hydrogenated oils. Because consumption of trans fats is associated ...
, and saturated fats. Two rectangular warnings were also added, advising against the consumption of products containing
caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine chemical classification, class and is the most commonly consumed Psychoactive drug, psychoactive substance globally. It is mainly used for its eugeroic (wakefulness pr ...
or
sweetener A sweetener is a substance added to food or drink to impart the flavor of sweetness, either because it contains a type of sugar, or because it contains a sweet-tasting sugar substitute. Various natural non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) and artificial s ...
s in children. These labels can appear individually or in groups, which will determine whether the product can include certain persuasive elements, such as toys, rewards, or images of celebrities, fictional characters, or cartoons on the packaging aimed at attracting the attention of minors. Additionally, if the product carries one or more seals, it cannot feature endorsements from medical societies. In addition to the seals, packaging must include
nutrition facts label The nutrition facts label (also known as the nutrition information panel, and other slight variations) is a label required on most convenience food, packaged food in many countries, showing what nutrients and other ingredients (to limit and get e ...
s that specify the exact amount of sugars added during the manufacturing process, as well as the nutritional content expressed in quantities of 100 grams or 100 milliliters.


Reception


Companies

The governments of the United States, Canada, Switzerland, and the European Union—where the largest multinational food corporations in the world are based—requested through the
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...
that Mexico postpone the implementation of front labeling. They argued that the measures were "more restrictive than necessary to meet Mexico's legitimate health objectives". The Mexican Consumer Products Industry Council (), which represents companies based in Mexico, asked the authorities to eliminate the new front labeling, describing it as confusing and unreliable. Companies such as
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
,
PepsiCo PepsiCo, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational food, snack, and beverage corporation headquartered in Harrison, New York, in the hamlet of Purchase, New York, Purchase. PepsiCo's business encompasses all aspects of the f ...
,
Jugos del Valle Jugos del Valle (Del Valle Juices) is a Mexican producer of fruit juices and beverages. Founded in 1947, today Jugos del Valle is one of the leading food, juice and beverage companies in Mexico producing popular brands such as Del Valle, Flori ...
and
Grupo Bimbo Grupo Bimbo, S.A.B. de C.V. (also known simply as Bimbo) is a Mexican multinational food company with a presence in over 33 countries located in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa. It has an annual sales volume of 15 billion dollars and is ...
requested the postponement. The latter was able to have some of its products exempted due to its own health strategy. FEMSA, the Coca-Cola producer in Mexico, filed a Recurso de amparo, writ of ''amparo'' lawsuit against the labeling of its products. Another lawsuit filed by the National Confederation of Industrial Chambers in March 2020 was dismissed by the Mexican judiciary. The Interamerican Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property and the Mexican Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property stated that food labeling was unconstitutional and violated international agreements Mexico had signed, including the NAFTA. Civil society researchers highlighted the repeated use of this argument in other countries to block new labeling initiatives.


Organizations

Among the organizations and entities that celebrated the implementation of the labeling were UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization, the National Human Rights Commission (Mexico), National Human Rights Commission of Mexico, the country's leading public universities (including the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the Instituto Politécnico Nacional, National Polytechnic Institute and the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Autonomous Metropolitan University), as well as the Mexican Secretariats of Economy and Health and the System for the Integral Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents.


Prizes and recognitions

The World Health Organization awarded SALUD for its efforts in the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases due to the front-of-package labeling update.


Impact


On population

In a survey conducted shortly after the second front-of-package system was officially implemented, Food Navigator found that only 10% of respondents considered the labels. Researchers from the Obesity Data Lab agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico, COVID-19 pandemic in the country would likely have indirectly affected the results. In 2020, Guadalupe López Rodríguez, nutritionist and researcher of the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, commented that, if the Chilean system were used as a model, the labels would have a significant impact on the population during the initial stage of implementation. However, over time consumers would become accustomed to them and would cease to give them the desired importance. Cuauhtémoc Rivera, president of the (National Alliance of Small Merchants), mentioned that consumers initially avoided products with seals, but purchases returned to normal levels subsequently. After one year of implementation, it was found that consumption had decreased in some categories, but there was no significant impact on sales. Jonás Murillo, vice president of the Food, Beverages, and Tobacco Commission of the Confederation of Industrial Chambers, explained that consumers tended to prefer larger versions of products with labels over smaller, healthier alternatives. Additionally, it was noted that in some cases, consumers favored products with more labels over unlabeled ones. Murillo also pointed out that the key issue with the system was its incorrect application. As an example, he compared a salad with dressing and a bottle of soft drink, concluding that despite their different nutritional values, both products had the same number of labels. Since 2025, the sale of labeled products in schools has been prohibited. According to Mexican authorities, 98% of schools nationwide sold junk food before the prohibition. Authorities provided guidelines outlining acceptable products and portion sizes. Additionally, preparing food using labeled products is also not permitted.


On companies

After its implementation, 85% of the products received a label. Despite inconclusive results, several companies (especially soft drinks and dairy companies) modified the formulas of certain products to reduce the risk levels. In some cases, the total number of labels on products was reduced, while in others, companies opted to sell an alternate version of the same product that was free of labels. Simón Barquera, director of the Center for Research in Nutrition and Health at the INSP, emphasized the importance of limiting corporate involvement in public health matters, as companies often seek ways to undermine such efforts.


See also

* List of food labeling regulations


References


External links


List of lawsuits on food labelling in Mexico
{{Authority control 2010 establishments in Mexico Food and drink in Mexico Food labelling Food law Law of Mexico