Litigating Diets: Exploring the Role of Strategic Litigation in Preventing Obesity and Diet-Related Diseases in Latin America and the Caribbean

饮食诉讼：探索战略诉讼在拉丁美洲和加勒比地区预防肥胖和饮食相关疾病中的作用

• 批准号: 2599850
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Liverpool
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2599850
• 关键词: Litigating; Diets; Exploring; Role; Strategic

In the past few years, Latin American and Caribbean countries have witnessed an increased use of strategic litigation to either oppose or demand effective policy measures to promote healthier, sustainable food environments and prevent diet-related diseases. This use of litigation follows the implementation - or lack thereof - of laws intended to prevent growing overweight, obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) throughout the region, where 58% of the population are already overweight or obese. In South America alone, NCDs are the estimated cause of at least 23% of all deaths.Overweight, obesity and diet-related diseases are linked to an increased consumption of unhealthy food, which in turn is linked to aggressive advertising and marketing strategies of multinational food companies (MFCs). Such strategies accelerate the 'nutrition transition' from traditional to highly processed diets: virtually all growth in MFCs sales occurs in developing and low- and middle-income countries. As a result, the international community has, now for over a decade, called for action to halt the rise in obesity, and specifically for the adoption of nutrition labelling and food marketing legislation, among other measures.In the context of this increasingly regulated environment, companies have used litigation alleging breaches of economic and constitutional rights, including property rights, the right to conduct a business, and the right to freedom of commercial expression. They have also invoked arguments anchored in international trade and investment law, specifically questioning the scientific basis of the measures concerned. At the same time, civil society has resorted to litigation to pressure governments to legislate in countries where regulation is inexistent or insufficient, and to oblige MFCs to comply with existing laws, normally in the name of public health and consumer protection, as well as children's rights.Against this background, this project will explore how litigation is being used as a strategy to enable or prevent the development of policies intended to prevent obesity and other diet-related diseases. By studying strategic litigation involving the regulation of both nutrition labelling, and front-of-pack labelling more specifically, as well as the marketing of unhealthy food to children in Latin America and the Caribbean, this project will analyse the potential of litigation to affect, positively or negatively, laws, policies and practices, to shape public discourse, and to strengthen or weaken social movements in Latin American and Caribbean countries. It will also contribute to the emerging literature on law and NCD prevention, and the promotion of healthier, sustainable food environments more specifically.

在过去几年中，拉丁美洲和加勒比国家越来越多地利用战略诉讼来反对或要求采取有效的政策措施，以促进更健康、可持续的粮食环境，并预防与饮食有关的疾病。这种诉讼的使用是在该地区实施或缺乏旨在防止超重、肥胖和与饮食有关的非传染性疾病（NCD）不断增加的法律之后，该地区58%的人口已经超重或肥胖。仅在南美洲，非传染性疾病估计就占所有死亡的至少23%，超重、肥胖和与饮食有关的疾病与不健康食品消费的增加有关，而这又与跨国食品公司积极的广告和营销战略有关。这些战略加速了从传统饮食向高度加工饮食的“营养过渡”：几乎所有的微生物燃料销售增长都发生在发展中国家和中低收入国家。因此，十多年来，国际社会一直呼吁采取行动遏制肥胖症的上升，特别是通过营养标签和食品营销立法等措施。在这种监管日益严格的环境下，公司利用诉讼指控侵犯经济和宪法权利，包括财产权、开展业务的权利，以及商业言论自由的权利。它们还援引了国际贸易和投资法中的论点，特别是质疑有关措施的科学依据。与此同时，民间社会诉诸诉讼，迫使政府在监管不存在或监管不足的国家立法，并迫使MFC遵守现行法律，通常是以公共卫生和消费者保护以及儿童权利的名义。该项目将探讨如何利用诉讼作为一种战略，促进或阻止旨在预防肥胖和其他饮食相关疾病的政策的制定。通过研究涉及拉丁美洲和加勒比营养标签、更具体地说包装正面标签以及向儿童销售不健康食品的监管的战略诉讼，该项目将分析诉讼对法律、政策和做法产生积极或消极影响的潜力，以塑造公共话语，加强或削弱拉丁美洲和加勒比国家的社会运动。它还将为新出现的关于法律和非传染性疾病预防的文献做出贡献，并更具体地促进更健康，可持续的食品环境。