Eduardo Murillo
Newspaper La Jornada
Monday November 21, 2022, p. 10
The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) has four appeals pending to be resolved against the front labeling regulations for industrialized food and beverages, the first of which is listed to be resolved this week. It is about the litigation that began the company From the heart of the fruit, SA de CV, whose resolution has been postponed on two occasions by the ministers of the second room.
In this case, the complaining firm denounces the violation of human rights contained in articles 1 and 5 of the Constitution
since it maintains that imposing this regulation on their products, which does not apply to other foods, is a discriminatory act, violates their freedom to work and trade.
The project to be discussed, presented by Minister Yasmín Esquivel, proposes to deny the protection on the basis of the constitutional power of the health authorities to impose rules on the commercialization of products whose excess content may harm the health of consumers.
It is not the first time that the SCJN and Minister Esquivel have analyzed this issue. In May 2019, they resolved another amparo, promoted against the previous labeling system, which expressed the amount of sugars, carbohydrates or fats that a product contained as a percentage of the necessary daily intake.
In that ruling, the highest court validated the front labeling standards, noting that they were based on scientific studies from the Codex Alimentarius, recommendations from the World Health Organization and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Foundation.
Only general principles based on scientific studies have been issued that recommend the nutritional information content of prepackaged foods and non-alcoholic beverages.
pointed out that first ruling.
With the change in labeling regulations, effective as of 2020, which now include octagonal seals that alert about excess fat, sugar, sodium or carbohydrates, came a new series of protections promoted by companies such as Herdez, Alimentos del Fuerte , Nutrisa and McCormick.
Of these trials, amparo 553/2022, against the labeling standards for food and non-alcoholic beverages, and 465/2022, against the reform of NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1- are already in the final stage in the SCJN. 2010. In addition to 5710/2018, which challenges the penalties for those who violate these rules.
Last week, President López Obrador referred to these cases as follows: I am sure that the protections are not going to prosper, because if the ministers of the Court approve something against the health of the people, well, I do not know what would happen
.
