Ultra-processed food epidemic drives disease surge and billions in treatment costs in Colombia
Bad diets kill millions of people every year and result in trillions of dollars in healthcare costs. Communities who are least able to afford it bear most of the burden.
The world’s largest food companies claim they want to be part of the solution. But behind closed doors, they are lobbying governments to derail public health laws.
Our series of investigations, along with partners on five continents, uncovers the global lobbying tactics of food corporations. We are beginning the publication of this project with one country, Colombia, where companies producing unhealthy food attempt to influence the May 2026 presidential elections.
In Colombia, more than half of the population is overweight, leading to enormous human and economic costs. Treating diseases caused by unhealthy food cost Colombia an estimated 1.3 billion euros in 2021. To confront this crisis, civil society and congressional members proposed various policies. In 2022, they pushed a bill to establish a tax on ultra-processed food, including sodas.
Food companies strenuously lobbied against the bill. Our investigation with Cuestión Pública reveals that companies funded 40% of all political party donations that year, totaling over 5.85 million Euros.
One of the recipients of donations from food companies was Paloma Valencia, one of the leading candidates in the ongoing presidential elections, which begin on May 31. She has pledged to eliminate the tax if elected president.
Despite the opposition, the tax was passed and proved effective: the consumption of unhealthy foods and sugary drinks dropped significantly. However, lawyers moved to the courtroom. Seventeen legal challenges were filed against the public health measures. Most challenges were filed by individuals under a process that allows any Colombian citizen to challenge the constitutionality of laws or policies. So far, they have all been rejected.
Methods
To identify who was opposing the public health laws, we conducted a comprehensive search through legal databases and interviews for all legal challenges to the laws. We also obtained and analyzed thousands of social media posts to determine the positions of presidential candidates on food policies. Additionally, we tracked external visits to Congress members by representatives of or people working on behalf of food companies.
Storylines
The pushback by the ultra-processed food lobby occurred behind closed doors. The names of food companies did not appear in the court documents, but most individuals who filed legal challenges were lawyers who had worked for food companies. Their submissions also used many of the same arguments employed by the companies against the tax. Three of the legal challenges were filed by a lawyer, Juan Manuel Charry Urueña, who avoided our question when asked who funded this work. In his email to submit the constitutional challenge, he copied a major regional soda manufacturer. When Cuestión Pública asked him why he copied the manufacturer, he explained that he was in discussion with the group because their products were being unfairly taxed at a higher rate. Four of the other legal challenges originated from a law firm and three from a former senator.
Unhealthy food has a significant impact in Colombia, resulting in billions of euros in healthcare costs and human suffering. Cuestión Pública interviewed the parents of children and infants who had serious health complications that specialists attributed to diets rich in ultra-processed food. Such diets also contribute to diabetes and a range of related diseases.
Deputy Editor
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