Dive Brief:

• Canada's federal government is proposing a major overhaul of the nutrition labels on packaged foods in that country.
• The core change would be to group all sugars together on the label, so that consumers can more easily see the total amount of sugars, and added sugar, in foods and drinks.
• Tied to the changes is a new recommendation from Canadian health regulators that consumers limit their intake of added sugars in foods to 100 grams per day -- roughly equal to three cans of soda.

Dive Insight:

Food processors here in the States would be wise to make note of Canada's initiative. Here's why:

First, and foremost, companies with processing operations on both sides of the border, and companies that export to Canada, will have to deal with the new rules.

Second, Canada's anti-sugar initiative is based upon recommendations made by the World Health Organization in March (although Canada's recommended sugar level is more lenient than what the WHO suggested). And although the U.S. is not likely to roll out new anti-sugar rules, it's a good possibility that many other countries will eventually follow the WHO suggestions -- and U.S. exporters may find themselves facing similar sugar limits and label laws elsewhere.