Update and Comparative Analysis of Food Environment Policies in Mexico: Implementation of the Healthy Food...

Mexico faces a public health crisis due to the rising prevalence of obesity and noncommunicable diseases, primarily driven by unhealthy food environments.

To conduct a second implementation of the Food Environment Policy Index in Mexico to assess policy implementation levels related to healthy food environments and to compare progress made from 2016 to 2024.

A national panel of 75 experts from three groups-64.0% from academia, 17.3% from government, and 18.7% from civil society organizations-assessed the level of policy implementation of 72 food environment-related indicators against international best practices.

The highest levels of policy implementation were found in the Food Labeling domain (e.g., List of ingredients/nutrient declarations and Front-of-package labeling) and the Monitoring and Intelligence domain (e.g., National surveys used in policy design and modification). Eighteen indicators improved in 2024; differences in proportions were statistically significant. The Food Retail domain showed the highest improvement (e.g., Incentives to increase the offer of healthy foods in stores). The expert panel identified five priority indicators and made corresponding recommendations.

Mexico has made progress in several aspects of the food environment; however, significant gaps in policy implementation remain and must be addressed to sustain momentum toward transforming the food system and improving nutrition and health for the entire population.