Summary:
The decree provides regulations on the Municipal Law No. 2659 of 2009, establishing actions to prohibit the sale, purchase, manufacture, distribution and advertising of ultra-processed products that contribute to childhood obesity.
Description:
For the purposes of FULL, the highlight of this decree centers around the regulation that explicitly forbids the sale, purchase and advertising of ultra-processed beverages and foods (in Portuguese, “produtos ultraprocessados”) in both public and private schools of Niteroi (Article 1).
It stipulates that ultra-processed products includes those containing food additives, colorings, preservatives or artificial antioxidants (Article 2, paragraph 2). Moreover, it established the following characteristics for ultra-processed foods (Article 2, paragraph 3):
- Products with industrial formulations made entirely or mostly from substances extracted from foods (such as oils, fats, sugar, starch, and proteins).
- Products derived from food components (like hydrogenated fats and modified starch), or synthesized in laboratories from organic materials like petroleum and coal (such as colorings, flavorings, flavor enhancers, and other additives used to give products appealing sensory properties).
- The manufacturing techniques for these products include extrusion, molding, and pre-processing by frying or cooking.
Lastly, the Niteroi decree also recommends the consumption of fresh or minimally processed foods and beverages (Article 4). This is intertwined with the need of public schools to provide products from family farming, in accordance with the National School Meals Program [Programa Nacional de Alimentação Escolar – PNAE] (Article 5).