Boycott of the General Law on Adequate and Sustainable Food (LGAAS) due to Corporate Interests

Government interests, linked to transnational food corporations such as Coca-Cola, have halted the publication and approval of the regulations for the LGAAS, which should have been published in October 2025. As a result, the Mexican government is in breach of its obligations and is preventing the exercise of human rights related to “the consumption of nutritious, sufficient, quality, safe, and culturally appropriate food; the strengthening of self-sufficiency, sovereignty, and food security; the foundations for social participation; and the creation of sustainable food environments and the promotion of breastfeeding” (Decree issuing the LGAAS, April 2024).

From civil society, various groups such as Vía Orgánica have participated in the drafting and implementation of this law. Despite the fact that its regulations were agreed upon with the previous Mexican administration, their publication has been blocked by members of the current government from the Ministries of Health and of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER). This has been done to prevent the enforcement of labeling for foods and beverages derived from genetically modified organisms; to inhibit the participation of civil society members free from corporate interests who have been involved in shaping the law for years, through the obstruction of the National Intersectoral System for Health, Food, Environment, and Competitiveness (SINSAMAC); and to favor purely commercial interests of transnational corporations that have created a global pandemic of obesity and malnutrition with their industrial products and beverages, in addition to generating massive plastic pollution.

We have sought out high-level authorities, resorted to public statements and media interviews, calling for the establishment of the regulations to prevent the Mexican government from remaining in breach of its obligations, while also offering—just as we always have—our full support and availability to move forward with the establishment of SINSAMAC. To date, however, we have received only “deaf ears” from the authorities responsible for its implementation.

We call on the Mexican government to fulfill its obligations, which will not only benefit the health of the Mexican population, but also generate virtuous cycles of production and availability of agroecological, local, and seasonal foods; preserve public health; and achieve savings of billions of pesos by avoiding the negative consequences of consuming foods and beverages containing agrochemicals and genetically modified organisms that contribute to weight gain and disease. This would also allow for the recovery of traditional diets based on the milpa, which for centuries kept people in Mexico healthy and well nourished.

We also call on Mexican and international society to remain vigilant and to support us in this struggle for food sovereignty based on peasant agroecological agriculture—stimulating the economy through fair prices for those who feed us and live in poverty, making food production methods and contents transparent so consumers can make informed choices about what they consume and what they do not, and above all, implementing sustainable agriculture, forestry, and livestock projects grounded in fair trade.