Decree nº 11.158, passed in 2022. Different rates apply to various categories of processed foods and beverages, including a 3.25% tax on specific food items such as sugars, candies, and sugar-sweetened beverages
| Nutrient types | Sodium | ||
| Products sampled | 3,336 |
Data on sodium content were obtained mainly from the official websites of food companies registered with the Brazilian Association of Food Industries, whose products comprise 70% of all processed food on the market. Any nutritional information that was not available on company websites was collected through the companies’ customer services. Baseline and follow-up data for each product included the manufacturer, brand and product name, as well as the sodium content per 100 g of food.
Products were classified into 20 food categories. The mean and median sodium content (mg per 100 g) of all food categories, along with their standard deviation and minimum and maximum values are reported for 2011, 2013–2014 and 2017.
For more information on the study methodology, please see the data source below.
Citation: Nilson EAF, Spaniol AM, Gonçalves VSS, et al. Sodium Reduction in Processed Foods in Brazil: Analysis of Food Categories and Voluntary Targets from 2011 to 2017. Nutrients. 2017;9(7):742. Published 2017 Jul 12. doi:10.3390/nu9070742
Dr. Eduardo Nilson
Researcher, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz)
Brasilia, Brazil
[email protected]
Brazilian Association of Food Industries (ABIA)
Researcher, Nutritional Technology Laboratory, Health and Nutrition Unit
| Nutrient types | Sodium | ||||
| Products sampled |
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Data on packaged food in Brazil was obtained between the years 2015-2015 by research teams from the Latin American Network of Food Composition Data System (LATINFOODS) as part of a larger study from 14 participating countries: Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Mexico, Paraguay, Panama, Peru, and Trinidad and Tobago. Samples were collected from the grocery stores with the greatest market share in each country; nutrition labels were photographed for content.
Mean, median, standard deviation, interquartile range and minimum and maximum levels were calculated for sodium content (mg/100g) in each of 12 food categories and were used for comparison with the regional target level for sodium.
Citation: Arcand J, Blanco-Metzler A, Benavides Aguilar K, L’Abbe MR, Legetic B. Sodium Levels in Packaged Foods Sold in 14 Latin American and Caribbean Countries: A Food Label Analysis. Nutrients. 2019;11(2):369. Published 2019 Feb 11. doi:10.3390/nu11020369
Dra. Johana Ortiz, PhD
Professor, University of Cuenca
[email protected]
Latin American Network of Food Composition Data System (LATINFOODS)
