By Aditya Kalra
NEW DELHI, Sept 7 (Reuters) – Indian activists spearheading calls for food labelling said a government proposal to have red warnings only when two concerning nutrients are high created an “industry-friendly loophole” disregarding public health, marking the first formal court objection to the plan.
India’s proposal to implement red warning labels has jolted the more than $100 billion packaged food and drink industry that long opposed such measures, but it is also angering activists who have publicly criticised the plan as too lenient, Reuters reported last week.
In the first complaint against the plan submitted in the Supreme Court, which is hearing pleas of activists, industry and government, nonprofit group 3S And Our Health said the labelling proposal creates an “industry-friendly loophole for unconscionable profit” that would exempt many harmful products.
“A product that is high in sugar alone remains a diabetes risk,” Rajiv Shankar Dvivedi, a lawyer representing 3S And Our Health said in the filing.
The complaint, to be heard on September 10, is not public but was reviewed by Reuters.
India has proposed that a red hexagonal label will be required if a food exceeds limits in at least two of three concerning nutrients – added sugar, salt or saturated fat.
Globally, experts say food warnings have benefited public health. Chile’s 2016 food labelling law, which puts separate black octagons on a pack for each high nutrient, was followed by a 23.7% decline in purchases of sugary drinks, researchers have said.
An Indian government source said activists’ concerns were unfounded as such labelling was always done in phases globally, and India would also make rules stricter by having warning labels for each concerning nutrient in the second phase of the plan.
No dates have yet been decided for the duration of phases, and the government is waiting for the Supreme Court to weigh in, the source said on condition of anonymity as the matter is sensitive and before courts.
India had 180 million adults who were overweight or obese in 2021, a figure projected to rise to 450 million by 2050, according to a study published in the Lancet.
Some industry groups have opposed the Indian measure, though not yet in court, saying a substantial majority of packaged products could attract warning labels, affecting demand, executives told Reuters last week.
The proposal came amid intense public anger and debate after Reuters reported last month that India had yielded to industry lobbying in March when Coca-Cola and groups backing Nestle and PepsiCo opposed having warning labels on the front of food and drinks packaging.
(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Jamie Freed)
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