They are looking for products with octagons to carry the phrase “excessive consumption damages health”

Congresswoman Magaly Ruiz Rodríguez, from the Alianza para el Progreso bench, proposes modifying Law 30021, Law for the Promotion of Healthy Eating for Boys, Girls and Adolescents, so that the phrase that accompanies the advertising warnings or octagons is not “avoid their excessive consumption” but “its excessive consumption damages health”.

“Understanding the consequences of excessive consumption of sodium, sugar and saturated fats, and their relationship with obesity and overweight, it is necessary that in the advertising warnings regulated in article 100 of the law, it is mentioned clearly and directly that the consumption Excessive use of such products causes harm to health, while the message ‘avoid excessive consumption’ does not indicate the real danger it represents, especially when it is aimed at minors, who wonder why avoid excessive consumption?without obtaining an immediate response”, is stated in the document.

PL 4658 also specifies that the Ministry of Education must provide, to public and private schools, clear, legible, prominent, understandable and eye-catching posters to be placed in visible areas in the areas destined for kiosks, dining rooms or places where food and non-alcoholic beverages with a high content of sugar, sodium, trans and saturated fats are sold. These posters could carry the following phrases:

• “Excessive consumption of sweets, snacks and drinks with a high sodium, sugar and saturated fat content harms health”
• “Excessive consumption of sweets, snacks with trans fats damages health.”

For his part, he Ministry of Health It would have 30 days to make the necessary modifications and adjustments to the regulations. While suppliers, school canteens, owners or administrators of kiosks will have 120 days to comply with the rule.

The legislative initiative was presented on April 4, 2023 and is already in the Consumer Education and Defense commissions for evaluation; After this process, if approved, the proposal may go to the Plenary for debate and voting.