NCD Prevention and International Investment Law in Latin America: Chile’s Experience in Preventing Obesity and Unhealthy Diets

Abstract

In 2016, Chile became the first country in Latin America to implement comprehensive regulations aimed at preventing obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases. It introduced innovative measures including a mandatory front-of-pack nutrition labelling scheme for food products high in sodium, free sugars, fats, and calories, and strict advertising and marketing restrictions of unhealthy foods to children under 14 years of age. However, food-exporting countries have questioned the lawfulness of these measures in the context of the World Trade Organization’s Technical Barriers to Trade Committee, and multinational food companies have filed several complaints before Chilean courts challenging their implementation. This article provides an overview of specific legal issues discussed in domestic courts and examines Chile’s measures under the rules of international investment law. It assesses whether they would withstand a treaty claim based on indirect expropriation, breach of the national treatment standard, and breach of the fair and equitable treatment standard.