Table 3.
Description of the main contents of the draft regulation and the three decrees approved between 2018 and 2020 on front-of-package warning labels in Uruguay
| Decree | Composition of the intersectoral group | Approval date | Planned entry into force | Objective | Scope of the regulation | Type of label | Nutrient profile model* | Additional provisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft regulation | Ministry of Public Health; Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining; Ministry of Social Development; Ministry of Education and Culture; Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Fisheries; Ministry of Economy and Finances; the local government of the capital city; the academia (Interdisciplinary research group “Food and Wellbeing” from Universidad de la República), the Honorary Commission for Cardiovascular Health; FAO; UNICEF and PAHO | July 2017 | 12 months after approval | To provide objective information through a simple and accessible tool that warns consumers about the excessive content of nutrients associated with overweight, obesity and NCD | Packaged foods with added sugar, fat or sodium, when the content of sugars, total fat, saturated fats and/or sodium exceeds the thresholds established in the decree | Octagonal signs with the expression “Excess”, followed by the corresponding nutrient and the acronym of the Ministry of Public Health (MSP) | PAHO nutrient profile model | - The inclusion of complementary nutritional information (nutritional claims) for products that were eligible for a nutritional warning (e.g. a reduced fat claim on a product featuring a sodium warning) is banned - Donations of foods with excessive content of nutrients to governmental institutions are banned |
| 272/018 | 29 August 2018 | 1 March 2020 (18 months after approval) | Packaged foods with added sugar, fat or sodium, when the content of sugars, total fat, saturated fats and/or sodium exceeds the thresholds established in the decree. Foods for medicinal uses, foods for partial meal replacement, dietary supplements, sport supplements and tabletop sweeteners are excluded. |
Flexible version of the PAHO nutrient profile model | The regulation would be modified if a regional FOP nutritional labelling regulation was approved at MERCOSUR | |||
| 246/020† | Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Education and Culture; Ministry of Economy and Finances; Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining; Ministry of Public Health | 2 September 2020 | 1 February 2021 (5 months after approval) | Adaptation of the Chilean nutrient profile model | N/A | |||
| 034/021† | 26 January 2021 | 1 February 2021 (4 d after approval) | Flexible version of the Chilean nutrient profile model | N/A |
*
Details about the nutritional criteria used to define excessive content of sugars, total fat, saturated fat and sodium are shown in Table 3.
†
The decrees only modified Decree 272/01 in terms of the nutrient profile model and the date of full compliance.