Study Analyzes Food and Beverage Industry Responses to Product Reformulation

After analyzing food and beverage industry responses to a 2015 consultation by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, researchers with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine have claimed that product reformulation—“the process of altering a food or beverage product’s recipe or composition to improve the product’s health profile”—“has been largely voluntary.” C. Scott, et al., “Food and beverage product reformulation as a corporate political strategy,” Social Science & Medicine, November 2016. Part of a larger research project seeking to explore the “political aspects of product reformulation” to inform the debate about obesity and non-communicable diseases, the study purportedly identifies common themes among respondents, such as messages that focus on “positive” nutrients, companies being “part of the solution and not the problem,” voluntary governance and individual responsibility.

In contrast to those who view product reformulation as a “win-win” strategy, the authors suggest that it “may be one part of the industry’s political strategy to preempt future policy debates and processes from moving towards mandatory approaches.” Drawing parallels with voluntary product reformulations undertaken by tobacco and alcoholic beverage companies, the authors claim that the consultation provided an opportunity for industry to “cast doubt on the scientific literature about the health effects of their products.”

Issue 625