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Ang alat? Sen. Tulfo gets 'salty' at DTI on noodles but agency says it’s not on their menu

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Jauhn Etienne Villaruel and Jekki Pascual, ABS-CBN News

MANILA (UPDATE) - Senator Raffy Tulfo grilled the Department of Trade and Industry on Monday over the supposedly unhealthy level of sodium in instant noodles sold in the Philippines. The DTI however said it was not in its mandate to regulate salt content in food.At the budget hearing of DTI, Tulfo brought to the Senate several instant noodle products and showed them to DTI officials. Tulfo pointed out that the products contain high levels of sodium, which he said was bad for health.Citing health experts, Tulfo said a person can consume 2,000mg of sodium per day, but some brands of instant noodles already have 1,600mg or higher.Tulfo said the most affected by this are the poor who often buy these products.&quot;Eto po mga instant noodle na ito, hindi lang po once a day kino-consume ng mahihirap kasi this is the only food they can afford. Kaya ang tawag dito &quot;poor man&#x27;s food.&quot; Some of this consumed twice a day, three times a day at minsan may kasama pa meryenda,&quot; said Tulfo.But Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual said DTI is not the right agency to handle such concerns. He cited a section of a law, which states that the responsibility for food items does not fall on the DTI.He said DTI only handles non-food items, while the Department of Health or Food and Drug Administration handles other products, especially food items.“Hindi po responsibility ng DTI na i-certify yung composition ng food products,&quot; Pascual said.Pascual&#x27;s answer irked Tulfo.&quot;Ito na naman tayo nagtuturuan po kayo. Walang gustong umamin. Dito naman sa article 10 ng Consumer Act nakalagay ‘on ur own initiative’ so dapat kayo mismo gumagawa ng initiative. Hindi na kayo dapat pagsabihan dahil at stake dito &#x27;yung welfare ng ating mahihirap na kababayan,&quot; Tulfo said.But Pascual insisted that they have no expertise to examine food products.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/08/29/22/marcos-admin-to-modernize-salt-industry-palace-says">Marcos administration eyes modernizing PH salt industry, Palace says</a></li></ul>&quot;Balik tayo sa Article 6 [ng Consumer Act] kung sino ang implementing agency. When it comes to food, drugs, cosmetics, devices and substances, DOH ang implementing agency... Wala po kaming health expert na magsasabi sa amin. Dapat idaan natin &#x27;yan sa DOH,&quot; Pascual said.&quot;Talagang umiiwas ka,&quot; Tulfo replied. &quot;Hindi ako umiiwas,&quot; Pascual retorted.While Tulfo conceded that DTI may not have the power to test food products, he said that they should at least have the &quot;decency&quot; to refer such concerns to other relevant agencies.Pascual said they would refer Tulfo&#x27;s concerns to FDA.Tulfo said the DTI can also ask manufacturers to lower sodium levels, like what is being done in other countries.The DTI&#x27;s proposed 2023 budget is P19.998 billion, 9 percent lower than their current budget.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/09/20/22/kantar-reveals-which-consumer-brands-most-pinoys-buy">Kantar reveals which consumer brands rank highest for Filipinos</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/17/22/fda-philippine-made-lucky-me-products-safe-to-eat">FDA: Philippine-made Lucky Me! products safe to eat</a></li></ul><div>RELATED VIDEO</div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe __idm_id__="26263553" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2293117" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

At the budget hearing of DTI, Tulfo pointed out that the products have high sodium content which he said was bad for health.

Ang alat? Sen. Tulfo gets 'salty' at DTI on noodles but agency says it’s not on their menu

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Ang alat? Sen. Tulfo gets 'salty' at DTI on noodles but agency says it’s not on their menu

Jauhn Etienne Villaruel and Jekki Pascual,

ABS-CBN News

Published Oct 17, 2022 03:11 PM PHT

|

Updated Oct 17, 2022 05:23 PM PHT

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instant noodles

sodium content

health

Senate

DTI

Raffy Tulfo

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