Imports of crude sugar from a company in the Dominican Republic will be blocked at all U.S. ports after the alleged use of forced labor in its production, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced this week.
The governor of Sao Paulo said on Monday at an industry conference that less protection of sugar would guarantee better access and lower prices for consumers. “Sugar is the most protected product in the market, the reduction of tax and non-tax barriers would guarantee better access,” Joao Doria said in his opening remarks at a three-day industry meet in Dubai.
Brazil wants India to cut its import taxes on chicken and chicken products, so it can cash in on India’s burgeoning demand for poultry and poultry products as incomes rise and food habits change.
In a new policy statement, the WMA calls on all national governments to reduce the affordability of added sugar and sugar-sweetened beverages through a tax on sugar. The tax revenue collected should then be used for health promotion programs aimed at reducing obesity and non-communicable diseases.
Taxing sugary drinks can lower consumption and reduce obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay, says a new WHO report. Fiscal policies that lead to at least a 20% increase in the retail price of sugary drinks would result in proportional reductions in consumption of such products, according to the report titled “Fiscal policies for Diet and Prevention of No communicable Diseases (NCDs)”.
The FAO Food Price Index for March rose by 1.0% compared to February, as soaring sugar prices and continued increase in palm oil quotations more than offset plunging dairy product prices. The Index averaged 151.0 points in March, its highest level in 2016, but still some 12.0% below its level of a year earlier.
A new WHO guideline recommends adults and children reduce their daily intake of free sugars to less than 10% of their total energy intake. A further reduction to below 5% or roughly 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day would provide additional health benefits.
A fire in Santos ravaged Copersucar's sugar terminal in Brazil, paralyzing operations of the world's biggest sugar trader and putting 10 million tons of export capacity offline for six months or more.
Brazilian sugar and ethanol producer Cosan and the country's largest rice producer, Camil Alimentos, reached an agreement to merge their food divisions, Cosan said in a statement this week.
US experts have argued that sugars and sweeteners added to foods pose such a serious health risk that they should be controlled in the same way that alcohol and tobacco are, according to commentary in the journal Nature.