NAPi bats for regulations to deter misleading ads of ultra-processed foods

To curb the promotion and consumption of ultra-processed foods, public advocacy group NAPi has urged the government to adopt its definition from the latest ICMR-NIN guidelines.

Talking about how advertisements of food products can be misleading in nature, the Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi) in its latest report titled ‘50 shades of food advertising’, said that food advertisers commonly use emotional values and celebrities to lure consumers without revealing the true content of nutrients of concern in the products.  

“The legal frameworks making a reference to misleading advertisement do not objectively define its meaning when it comes to a food product and is left to be interpreted by a committee and also leaves consumers or public health experts in a dilemma,” said Arun Gupta, paediatrician and convener, NAPi.

The public advocacy forum has thus made several recommendations to the government to help curb the promotion and consumption of ultra-processed foods.

These recommendations include amendments to regulatory frameworks across ministries to curb misleading advertisement of high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) foods; to develop or adopt an objective definition of HFSS as provided by ICMR-NIN guidelines, which will bring harmony with all regulations concerning food and beverage advertisements.

Among other recommendations made by NAPi are provisions for disclosing the nutrients of concern in advertisement of food and beverage products in the FSSAI regulations and launching a public health campaign to inform people about the harm caused by HFSS foods.