The Executive Branch amends the plan to Indecopi to favor the industry

The State against the State. After knowing the alleged irregular favoring of an Indecopi room to the Bimbo company, which did not consign the corresponding octagon of trans fats in its product ‘white bread without borders’ in 2019, the Ministry of Health (Minsa) came forward and announced the challenge of the resolution signed by Silvia HookerUntil the day before yesterday, Manager of International Affairs of the National Society of Industries (SNI), which resolved last September to nullify the sanction against the bakery.

The highest health authority of the country remarked that the advertising of any food or non-alcoholic drink with a high content of sugar, sodium or saturated fat must consign in a clear, legible, prominent and understandable way the advertising warnings provided by the healthy eating law for its marketing, regardless of the vastness of its content. In addition, he recalled that since July 23, 2021, the production, importation and sale of partially hydrogenated oils and fats is prohibited, Therefore, its use as an ingredient in industrialized foods and beverages is currently not allowed.

“We disagree with the majority position of Indecopi’s Specialized Chamber for the Defense of the Consumer and we maintain that the obligation to consign the warning” Contains trans fats: Avoid their consumption “does not require any technical parameter and must be consigned in all products that contain fats. trans, regardless of their quantity ”, asserted the Minsa.

He added that the purpose of the legislation is to avoid the consumption of trans fats and gradually eliminate them in all processed products. For this reason, he pointed out that the arguments of the court contravene this objective and unprotect consumers.

Meanwhile, the Peruvian Association of Consumers and Users (Aspec) requested the intermediation of the Prosecutor’s Office to explain why Indecopi resolved the Bimbo case with rules (extinct, in addition) of the US FDA above Peruvian law.

In the hands of the controller

For his part, the president of Indecopi, Julián Palacín, chose to request an investigation by the Comptroller’s Office to ventilate any conflict of interest between the members inherited from previous administrations (Hooker was appointed in 2017 by the former president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, with the Zavala cabinet) and did not appear yesterday before the Parliament’s Consumer Defense Commission.

This decision was not well received by the head of the group, José Luna, who demanded the presence of Prime Minister Mirtha Vásquez to explain the details of this absenteeism. Before, Palacin he had rescheduled his September 28 visit. It should be noted that Indecopi is a body attached to the PCM. Finally, he was given one last chance for next Tuesday the 26th.

Express resolution in Indecopi

The Indecopi Chamber resolved the Bimbo case with US laws, as if there was a gap in Peruvian law.