Food health in Latin America is not solely determined by personal or cultural choices—it is deeply shaped by the systematic interference of ultra-processed food corporations in public policy. This phenomenon has become a structural obstacle to advancing healthy diets. At the recent forum Food Industry Interference in Food Policies in Latin America, organized by the NGO El Poder del Consumidor in Mexico City on July 16, experts from the region denounced the political power of the food industry and its role in the obesity and non-communicable disease epidemic.
A necessary forum: The power behind the plate
The event brought together key voices from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico. It addressed the strategies used by corporations to obstruct or weaken public policies aimed at protecting public health. Ana María Maya, from Brazil’s Instituto Brasileiro de Defesa do Consumidor (IDEC), described how marketing targeted at children, partnerships with governments, and the capture of public spaces have become tools to position ultra-processed products. Alejandra Niño, from FIAN Colombia, emphasized the human rights dimension: access to adequate food is a right undermined by private interests. The industry displaces fresh food with hypercaloric, low-nutrient products.
International trade and free trade agreements also play a significant role in shaping unhealthy food environments. Labeling policies, health taxes, or advertising restrictions are often delayed or weakened under corporate pressure.
The epidemiological context: Obesity as a symptom of a sick system
Between 1990 and 2016, childhood and adolescent obesity in Latin America tripled. This increase is no coincidence—it occurred in parallel with a radical transformation of the diet and food environment.
The rise of ultra-processed products—sugary drinks, salty snacks, sweetened cereals—is directly linked to the spread of the neoliberal model. A model that, in the name of the free market, allowed corporations to operate without restrictions in schools, universities, hospitals, and rural and urban communities.
Today, six out of ten deaths in the region are linked to non-communicable diseases, many of them resulting from poor diets. Each year, over 600,000 people die from causes attributable to poor nutrition.
Political barriers: When money outweighs health
One of the central topics of the forum was the difficulty in implementing effective public policies. Although clear international recommendations exist—such as sugar-sweetened beverage taxes, front-of-package warning labels, and marketing regulations for children—implementation remains weak or inconsistent.
Why? Because they face an economic power that has become political power.
Corporations fund campaigns, pressure lawmakers, cast doubt on science, infiltrate educational institutions, and promote narratives of personal responsibility. In doing so, they neutralize evidence-based policy efforts. Countries that have made progress—like Mexico with its warning labels—have faced legislative, judicial, and media battles. The industry doesn’t just lobby: it threatens, litigates, and spreads disinformation.
Interference strategies: An unwritten but well-executed manual
During the forum, common patterns of interference were identified across the region. These include the capture of public policies through so-called philanthropic foundations, which allow corporations to gain a seat at decision-making tables. Another tactic is the use of the discourse of individual responsibility, which blames consumers and hides the structural determinants of health. Aggressive marketing directed at children was also highlighted, with schools becoming distribution channels for unhealthy products. Scientific deterrence was another strategy: corporations fund studies that contradict public evidence. Lastly, disinformation campaigns were mentioned, manipulating social media and traditional outlets to erode public support.
These tactics are not improvised. They are part of a coordinated regional strategy. The industry operates intelligently and without ethics.
Digital harassment and institutional pressure: new forms of intimidation
At the forum, Alejandro Calvillo, founder of El Poder del Consumidor, denounced the growing use of social media as a weapon of attack by the food industry. He explained how activists and critical academics have been targeted by systematic smear campaigns and online trolling, all aimed at silencing uncomfortable voices. Christian Torres, coordinator of the interference unit at the same organization, warned of even more severe forms of intimidation: from legal threats to the use of spyware against those advocating for evidence-based policies. Both emphasized that these actions are meant to instill fear, demobilize civic participation, and weaken public oversight. Intimidation is not a side effect—it is a deliberate strategy to preserve the corporate status quo.
What comes next: Reclaiming public control over food systems
The forum concluded with an urgent call to rethink food governance, emphasizing that public health cannot be left in the hands of the market. Participants stressed the need to build a new political architecture that prioritizes the public interest over private profit. This includes ensuring scientific and regulatory independence, safeguarding public policies from conflicts of interest through mechanisms of transparency, prevention, and mitigation, guaranteeing adequate budgets for food education, and restoring value to local and sustainable food systems.
A narrative we must change
The history of food in Latin America has been written by those who hold power. It is time to change the narrative—to place life, not capital, at the center.
As many speakers affirmed, this is not merely a public health issue. It is a matter of social justice, food democracy, and human dignity. The region has the resources, knowledge, and movements to resist. What’s missing is political will and organized social pressure. And that is precisely what this forum aimed to build: a space for informed outrage and collective action.
*Machine translation, proofread by Ricardo Aceves.
Autor
Nutricionista por PUCE y Salubrista Público por USFQ, diploma en Políticas Públicas por FLACSO. Ha coordinado proyectos de salud reconocidos por OPS y trabajado como consultor internacional. Actualmente, es docente en PUCE, enfocado en nutrición comunitaria y salud pública.
