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In 2019, Health Canada published an updated version of Canada's Dietary Guide, whose recommendations include drinking more water, eating more plant-based protein, limiting intake of highly processed foods, and cooking more meals at home.
Throughout the three-year review process, Canada's largest agri-food companies used a variety of tactics to oppose the changes: a total of 366 corporate political actions (lobbying, etc.), of which 82 (22%) criticized the scientific data on which Health Canada's recommendations were based, and 76 (21%) presented non-peer-reviewed, industry-friendly data.
These are the findings of a study published in the December 2023 issue of Canadian Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention. Lead author Marie-Chantal Robitaille is a master's student at the University of Montreal under the supervision of Jean-Claude Mbarak, professor in the Department of Nutrition.
Preventing undue corporate influence
Health Canada established a committee to review the scientific literature and hold public consultations to update Canada's Food Guide based on the three principles. To ensure transparency and avoid conflicts of interest, food industry representatives and industry-funded experts and scientists were excluded from the consultations.
“Health Canada's decision is supported by the scientific literature and the World Health Organization, which has concluded that public-private partnerships can undermine the focus on the public good and make it difficult to establish public health policy,” Robitaille said.
She noted that previous versions of the food guide were considered outdated by many health experts and criticized as “ineffective and unreliable because they had become a marketing tool for certain products.”
Although food industry representatives were excluded from the hearing, they submitted 11 letters of opinion to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health, expressing their opinions on the guidelines.
A wide range of tactics
Robitaille combed through these reports and the websites of the 11 organisations that submitted them, investigating their political activities.
Her analysis revealed four main strategies.
Information management, e.g. suppression of information and exploitation of third-party credibility; discourse strategies, e.g. framing debates on food and public health related issues in favor of industry interests; political influence, e.g. direct lobbying and indirect access to policy makers; coalition management, e.g. building support networks, especially with health professionals and other opponents.
“I began by identifying the corporate political activities being undertaken by companies in the biofood industry to influence the development of Canada's Food Guide, and then documented and analyzed their discourse and positions on Health Canada's three guidelines and recommendations,” Robitaille explained.
Full-scale lobbying
Of the 366 cases of corporate political activity Robitaille found, three groups made up the majority: the Dairy Farmers of Canada (24 percent), the Canadian Juice Council, which also represents makers of sweetened and soft drinks (20 percent), and the National Cattlemen's Association (16 percent).
The most common practices were information management (197 cases, 53.8%) and discourse strategies (108 cases, 29.5%).
The most frequently used strategy within the information management category was information suppression, which consisted mainly of criticizing the scientific evidence and highlighting its complexity and uncertainty (98 cases, 27%).
Robitaille pointed to a position paper from the Canadian Egg Farmers Association, arguing that “consultation and dialogue with both food producers and medical experts is an important step to ensure there is a balance of views throughout the process.”
Similarly, they argued that the Canadian Meat Council should be consulted because the council “has extensive nutritional and scientific expertise, as well as experience in consumer education.”
Industry messages ignored
Robitaille said pressure from the agri-food industry on the committee responsible for revising Canada's Food Guide and Health Canada has been ineffective.
“This is a positive for Canada compared to other countries where the food industry has been successful in exerting a significant influence,” Robitaille said. “Research has shown that the same tactics have been used in other jurisdictions, most notably the United States, where companies banded together to oppose government efforts to combat obesity between 2010 and 2012.”
According to the article, one of the industry's main strategies has been to “exaggerate the costs of proposed changes by using alarmist narratives suggesting that the proposed recommendations would fail and that a host of undesirable health and economic problems would affect society as a whole.”
New Canadian Food Guide: Basic Principles and Recommendations
Principle 1: A variety of nutritious foods and beverages is the foundation of a healthy diet. Health Canada recommends:
Regularly consume vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and foods rich in protein, especially plant-based protein sources. Eat foods that are primarily unsaturated fats rather than saturated fats. Drink water regularly.
Principle 2: Processed and prepared foods and beverages high in sodium, sugar and saturated fat undermine a healthy diet. Health Canada recommends:
Limit your intake of foods high in sodium and saturated fats. Avoid sugary drinks.
Principle 3: Navigating complex food environments and supporting healthy eating requires knowledge and skills. Health Canada recommends:
Make healthy food choices at stores and restaurants. Plan and prepare healthy meals and snacks. Eat meals with family and friends as often as possible.
Further information: Marie-Chantal Robitaille et al., “Corporate Politics of the Biofood Industry During Health Canada's Revision of Canada's Food Guide, Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada (2023).” DOI: 10.24095/hpcdp.43.12.01
