Objective: To identify and monitor food industry use of political practices during the adoption of nutrition warning labels (WL) in Colombia. Design: Document analysis of publicly available information triangulated with interviews. Setting: Colombia. Participants: Eighteen key informants from the government (n 2), academia (n 1), civil society (n 12), the media (n 2) and a former food industry employee (n 1). Results: In Colombia, the food industry used experts and groups funded by large transnationals to promote its preferred front-of-pack nutrition labelling (FOPL) and discredit the proposed warning models. The industry criticised the proposed WL, discussing the negative impacts they would have on trade, the excessive costs required to implement them and the fact that consumers were responsible for making the right choices about what to eat. Food industry actors also interacted with the government and former members of large trade associations now in decision-making positions in the public sector. The Codex Alimentarius was also a platform through which the industry got access to decision-making and could influence the FOPL policy. Conclusions: In Colombia, the food industry used a broad range of political strategies that could have negatively influenced the FOPL policy process. Despite this influence, the mandatory use of WL was announced in February 2020. There is an urgent need to condemn such political practices as they still could prevent the implementation of other internationally recommended measures to improve population health in the country and abroad, nutrition WL being only of them.

Background In Colombia, public health policies to improve food environments, including front-of-pack nutrition labelling and marketing restrictions for unhealthy products, are currently under development. Opposition to these policies by the food industry is currently delaying and weakening these efforts. This opposition is commonly known as ‘corporate political activity’ (CPA) and includes instrumental (action-based) strategies and discursive (argument-based) strategies. Our aim was to identify the CPA of the food industry in Colombia. Methods We conducted a document analysis of information available in the public domain published between January–July 2019. We triangulated this data with interviews with 17 key informants. We used a deductive approach to data analysis, based on an existing framework for the CPA of the food industry. Results We identified 275 occurrences of CPA through our analysis of publicly available information. There were 197 examples of instrumental strategies and 138 examples of discursive strategies (these categories are not mutually exclusive, 60 examples belong to both categories). Interview participants also shared information about the CPA in the country. The industry used its discursive strategies to portray the industry in a ‘better light’, demonstrating its efforts in improving food environments and its role in the economic development of the country. The food industry was involved in several community programmes, including through public private initiatives. The industry also captured the media and tried to influence the science on nutrition and non-communicable diseases. Food industry actors were highly prominent in the policy sphere, through their lobbying, close relationships with high ranking officials and their support for self-regulation in the country. Conclusions The proximity between the industry, government and the media is particularly evident and remains largely unquestioned in Colombia. The influence of vulnerable populations in communities and feeling of insecurity by public health advocates is also worrisome. In Colombia, the CPA of the food industry has the potential to weaken and delay efforts to develop and implement public health policies that could improve the healthiness of food environments. It is urgent that mechanisms to prevent and manage the influence of the food industry are developed in the country.

To evaluate the health benefits and safety of folic acid fortification of wheat and maize flour (alone or in combination with other micronutrients) on folate status and health outcomes in the overall population, with emphasis on populations at risk.

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Calcium is the only dietary factor that affects both non‐heme and heme iron absorption in humans. Mechanisms behind this effect are not elucidated. An hypothesis is that calcium may modify gene expression of proteins involved in iron absorption. An interesting experimental model for evaluating this effect is the human cell line Caco‐2, which is easy to use and produces results that strongly correlate with the absorption of iron in humansObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of calcium on expression of proteins involved on both heme, and non‐hemeiron absorption by Caco‐2 cells.MethodologyCaco‐2 cells were seeded by 1h in a 2 μM de iron solution (ferrous sulfate) and calcium (chloride); calcium: iron molar ratios 0:1 to 1000:1. Iron absorption was determined by ferritin method, and gene expression by qRT‐PCR. Changes in ferritin and gene expression were reported as increment respect to a control (calcium: iron molar ratio=0:1). Differences between experimental conditions were evaluated by a one‐way ANOVA test; p<0.05 was considered significant.ResultsCalcium does not affect iron absorption. Calcium increases genes involved in non‐heme iron uptake: DcytB (p=0.003), and DMT1 (p=0.016). Otherwise, calcium decreases genes involved in heme iron uptake: HCP1 (p=0.002), and HMOX‐1 (p=0.012). Expression of FPN gene (efflux protein for both heme, and non‐heme iron) decreased by calcium exposition (p<0.0001).ConclusionThe calcium effect of calcium on expression of gene involved on heme, and non‐heme iron uptake is opposite. Nevertheless, it decreases FPN expression which is the only protein involved on two iron types efflux from the enterocytes. This effect may explained the negative effect of calcium on iron absorption previously described in humans.Support or Funding InformationCODI, Universidad de Antioquia.Corporación Vidarium, Centro de Investigación en Nutrición Salud y Bienestar.

Impuesto al valor agregado (IVA) a los alimentos de la canasta familiar en Colombia: proyecto de ley 197 de 2018 Value added taxes (VAT) on the food of the family basket in Colombia, project of law 197 of 2018