Nestle Adds Sugar To Baby Cereal Sold In India, But Not In Europe, UK: Study

Nestle, the world's largest producer of consumer goods and baby formula, has allegedly been found to incorporate sugar into infant milk sold in countries across Asia and Africa, according to a report by Public Eye.

The Swiss investigative organization has claimed in the report that Nestle has been including sucrose or honey as sugar additives in samples of Nido, a follow-up milk formula for infants aged one and above, as well as in Cerelac, a cereal intended for children between six months and two years old.

Notably, such products are sugar-free in the United Kingdom, Germany Switzerland, and other developed nations, the investigation by Public Eye revealed.

The report stated that in India, where sales exceeded $250 million in 2022, all variants of Cerelac baby cereals contain added sugar, averaging nearly 3 grams per serving.

Similarly, in South Africa, every variant of Cerelac baby cereals contains four grams or more of added sugar per serving. In Brazil, the world's second-largest market with approximately $150 million in sales in 2022, three-quarters of Cerelac baby cereals (known as Mucilon in the country) contain added sugar, averaging 3 grams per serving.

In Brazil, under the name Mucilon, two out of eight products were found to be sugar-free, while the remaining six contained nearly 4g of sugar per serving. In Nigeria, one tested product had up to 6.8g of added sugar.

"This is a big concern," Rodrigo Vianna, epidemiologist and Professor at the Department of Nutrition of the Federal University of Paraíba in Brazil. "Sugar should not be added to foods offered to babies and young children because it is unnecessary and highly addictive. Children get used to the sweet taste and start looking for more sugary foods, starting a negative cycle that increases the risk of nutrition-based disorders in adult life. These include obesity and other chronic non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes or high blood pressure," the expert added.

On the other hand, examinations of products from the Nido brand, with global retail sales exceeding $1 billion, revealed significant disparities in sugar content.

In the Philippines, products targeted at toddlers have no added sugar. However, in Indonesia, Nido baby food products, marketed as Dancow, all contain approximately 2g of added sugar per 100g of product, in the form of honey, or 0.8g per serving.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Nestle said that the company adheres to all local regulations and international standards.

"We believe in the nutritional quality of our products for early childhood and prioritize using high-quality ingredients. Over the past five years, Nestlé India has reduced added sugars by up to 30%, depending on the variant, in our infant cereals portfolio (milk cereal based complementary food)," Mint quoted a company spokesperson as saying.