Nestle India has claimed that the company is reducing the extra sugar content year by year. Know the details; Public Eye is a Swiss investigative organization. It claimed that Cerelac and Nido, have high levels of added sugar and honey. These are Nestle’s popular baby food brands. This goes against global guidelines. These guidelines aim to prevent obesity and chronic diseases.
Nestle India controversy
The sales of Nestle India exceeded 250 million dollars in 2022. It was found that all Cerelac baby cereals contain added sugar. The average sugar content is nearly 3 grams per serving. On the other hand, a spokesperson from Nestle India mentioned that the company has been working on reducing added sugars by up to 30% for the past five years.
Official statement of Nestle India
We really care about the quality of the food. We make for young kids and we make sure to use really good ingredients. In the past 5 years, Nestle India has been working hard to reduce the amount of added sugars in our baby cereals. Depending on the type of cereal, we have been able to reduce the added sugars by up to 30%.We always keep an eye on our products and try to make them even better. We want to reduce the amount of added sugars without making any compromises on the quality, safety, and taste of our food.
Nestle India baby food report
After looking at the report, it was found that other countries have different amounts of added sugar in their baby food. In Thailand, it’s 6 grams, in Ethiopia it’s 5 grams, in South Africa it’s 4 grams, in Brazil it’s an average of 3 grams, in Indonesia it’s 2 grams, in Mexico it’s 1.7 grams, and in Nigeria and Senegal it’s 1 gram. In the Philippines, the food made for toddlers doesn’t have any added sugar.In Nestle’s main European markets, including the UK, there is no added sugar in the formulas for young children. However, some cereals made for older toddlers do have added sugar. But don’t worry, the cereals made for babies between six months and one year don’t have any added sugar. These results came after a group called Public Eye sent samples of Nestle’s baby food products from Asia, Africa, and Latin America to a lab in Belgium for testing. The lab found added sugar in some samples of Nido and Cerelac.The World Health Organization says that no food for children under three should have any added sugars or sweeteners.
