We Take 4 Times More Sugar Than Recommended

Spaniards consume four times more sugar than the 25 grams per day recommended by the World Health Organization, a true nonsense of which we are not always aware.

We consume much more sugar than we should

Much of the sugar we consume is part of other food products and goes unnoticed on labeling. The WHO recommends 25 grams daily.

Excess sugar in food is associated with obesity, diabetes, vascular disorders and some types of cancer, among other diseases. They are disorders and main causes of mortality that could decrease if sugar consumption were reduced, also hidden.

In addition, work on sugarcane plantations is one of the hardest in the world and among the lowest paid. In some countries, 16-hour workdays are paid at two euros and child labor is not objected to.

There is also an environmental damage: the demand for sugar causes cane plantations to invade and destroy tropical forests, mangroves and other ecosystems, which reduces biodiversity and favors climate change. Sugar imports from Spain represent the emission of 130,000 tons of CO2 per year.

Campaign 25 grams

VSF Justicia Alimentaria is running the “25 grams” campaign so that Spanish laws protect consumers.

The 5 petitions they require from the Government (which you can join at vsf.org.es) are:

1. Regulate the advertising of foods harmful to health (especially those aimed at children).
2. To be obliged to clearly report on the labels the amount of sugar contained in food, as well as the effects that excessive consumption produces on health (as is done on tobacco packs).
3. That healthy food options are guaranteed in schools and that the advertising of harmful products for children disappear.
4. Taxes on unhealthy foods and bonuses on healthy eating.
5. That the food industries be included in the Law of Transparency and access to information so that citizens can control it.