Food labeling in Mexico

Food labeling in Mexico refers to the official norm that mainly consists of placing labels on processed food sold in the country in order to help consumers make a better purchasing decision based on nutritional criteria. The system was approved in 2010 under the Norma Oficial Mexicana (NOM) NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010 (often shortened to NOM-051).^: 1 The standards, denominated as Daily Dietary Guidelines (Spanish: Guías Diarias de Alimentación or GDA), were based on the total amount of saturated fats (grasas saturadas), fats (grasas), sodium (sodio), sugars (azúcares) and energy or calories (calorías) represented in kilocalories per package, the percentage they represented per individual portion, as well as the percentage that they would represent in a daily intake.

After its implementation, several studies were carried out to determine whether its execution was effective. The results indicated that most respondents were unaware of the recommended intakes, did not understand the meaning of the values indicated by the system, and that they did not use the system to shop. Further, when questioning undergraduate nutrition students, most were unable to interpret the system correctly. Because of this, the Secretariat of Health looked for alternatives to the system. In 2016, Chile published a simplified food labeling system, which inspired the creation of a similar system for Mexico.

In 2020, the system was reworked and updated with the Food and Beverage Front-of-Package Labeling System (Spanish: Sistema de Etiquetado Frontal de Alimentos y Bebidas; SEFAB) which was developed and implemented by the National Institute of Public Health (INSP). In 2020, labeling standards were applied to 85% of the food products consumed in Mexico, one of the most obese countries in the world.