Changes in the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in sweet foods and beverages after implementation of Law of Promoting Healthy Eating in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14306/renhyd.28.3.2186Keywords:
Food and Beverages, Sweetening Agents, Food LabelingAbstract
Introduction. The Law for the Promotion of Healthy Eating establishes that non-alcoholic food and beverages (F&B) with excess of critical nutrients must contain front-of-package warning labeling and in case of containing sweeteners and caffeine they must display a cautionary legend. The objective was to evaluate changes in the presence and types of non-nutritive sweeteners in sweet foods and beverages after the implementation of the PAS Law in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
Methods: Data were collected on the content and type of non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) from the packaging of sweets F&B in the main supermarket chains of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires in 2018/2019 and in 2023. Different non-parametric tests for matched samples were used to compare the frequency of F&B with NNS before and after the implementation of the regulation, the frequency of each NNS used by product category and changes in the number of NNS types between both periods.
Results: Of the total number of sweets F&B surveyed (n= 1823), a slight increase, although not significant, was found in the presence of ENN, from 26.9% to 27.6% (p=0.059). The beverage group was the only one with a significant increase (p<0.001). The most used additives, in both measurements, were acesulfame K (19.6% vs. 21.0%, p=0.001), aspartame (14.4% vs. 14.8%, p=0.169) and sucralose (11.4% vs. 12.0%, p=0.184). Of the 515 A&B with the presence of sweetener, 77.3% presented the cautionary legend.
Conclusions: One year after the application of the regulation, the change in the amount of NNS in the sweets F&B was not significant, except for the beverages group. It is necessary to monitor the presence of NNS in sweets F&B to know how the Law will impact the reformulation of the food matrix in the coming years.
Funding: Salud Investiga 2022-2023 Grant, Ministry of Health of Argentina.
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