Beverage makers are asking the government to include packaged snacks highly reliant on sugar in the plan to put health warnings on sweetened food, according to the country’s trade minister.
Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said drink manufacturers had opposed putting health warnings on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). He said it might further weaken the demand for SSBs, product that were slapped with additional taxes under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law.
Lopez said the beverage industry is against putting the words “warning” or “caution” in the labels of sugar-based drinks, fearing that this may weaken further demand, he said in a text message to reporters.
“We emphasized that we are not really taxing, but more to raise consciousness of consumers on sugar content…more of making more prominent the sugar content of the product. [This is] similar to calorie content in labels,” Lopez said.
The Department of Trade and Industry held a meeting with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the beverage industry to discuss how to go about President Duterte’s desire to put health warnings on SSBs. The policy is intended to inform buyers how much sugar they will be taking in when consuming SSBs.
In the meeting, beverage makers demanded the government to not only warn consumers of the sugar content in drinks but also in packed food.
“Sugar in beverage supplies energy requirement of Filipinos. The labeling requirement must also cover packaged food, according to the beverage industry,” Lopez said.
Confectionery items, such as candies and chocolates, make use of sugar as main ingredient. On the average, the staple constitutes about 60 percent of their content.
“It was noted that sugar per se is not bad, especially if taken in moderate quantity. It is a source of energy and calories needed for the day,” the trade chief added.
As an alternative to health warnings, beverage makers want to put instead the sugar and calorie content of their products, as long as strong words are not used in the label. “But we have to still determine which products should have a front label ‘high in sugar’ and indicate the sugar content,” Lopez added.
As of recent consultation, the government is amenable to the alternative proposed by beverage makers.
“Our studies will continue and consultations with technical agencies like [the] FNRI [Food Nutrition Research Institute], NNC [National Nutrition Council] and [the] FDA. Whatever the decision, we will set a transition period to allow them to use up current packaging,” Lopez said.
Sugar in beverage is generally a low source of sugar and calories in a day, usually around 3 percent only, the trade chief said, citing beverage makers. Other nonbeverage products that are major sources of sugar are rice, bread, carbohydrates and other food products.
Health warnings on SSBs could be another weight on the shoulders of beverage makers who had to carry the cross of additional taxes on SSBs imposed by the TRAIN law, which slapped a P6-per-liter tax on drinks containing caloric or noncaloric sweetener, and a P12-per-liter duty on beverages with high-fructose corn syrup.
Lopez said the beverage industry “could be” affected by the new policy of the government, but argued demand for SSBs will not go down. He said the cheaper price of powdered juice as against soft drinks will make it survive the changes on SSBs.