ICBA Africa Promotes Evidence-Based Dialogue on Low-Calorie Sweeteners Across the Continent

Since its establishment in August 2025, the International Council of Beverages Associations Africa (ICBA Africa) has been actively promoting evidence-based discussions on low- and no-calorie sweeteners throughout several African countries. Headquartered in Nairobi and led by Executive Director Iddah Asin, the organisation aims to contribute to nutrition and food policy debates by engaging a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including regulators, scientists, public health experts, and industry representatives.

ICBA Africa has convened a series of roundtable meetings in South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, and Nigeria. These forums brought together diverse participants such as government regulators, researchers, public health professionals, beverage industry players, local associations, and representatives from the International Sweeteners Association. The discussions centred on the potential role of low- and no-calorie sweeteners in public health strategies and consumer diets, particularly as alternatives to sugar for those seeking lower-calorie beverage options.

The organisation underscores that these sweeteners could be part of approaches to reduce sugar and calorie intake, thereby broadening beverage choices. However, despite the engagement and exchange of information, there is no public evidence that these roundtables have produced formal consensus statements or directly influenced regulatory changes within the participating countries.

Internationally, the safety and health effects of low- and no-calorie sweeteners remain under close scrutiny. The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a guideline in May 2023 advising against the use of non-sugar sweeteners as a strategy for controlling body weight or reducing the risk of noncommunicable diseases. This conditional recommendation is based on systematic reviews indicating no sustained benefit for weight loss and potential associations with some adverse health outcomes. Importantly, WHO clarifies that this guideline is not a toxicological safety assessment and does not replace established acceptable intake limits set by expert bodies.

Regarding safety evaluations, the Food and Agriculture Organization/WHO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) reaffirmed in 2023 that aspartame—a widely used low-calorie sweetener—is safe when consumed within an acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 0–40 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. Similarly, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reported in September 2026 that the sweetener salt of aspartame-acesulfame (E 962) poses no safety concerns at current authorised exposure levels, reconfirming the ADIs for both aspartame and acesulfame K.

However, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B) based on limited evidence, highlighting uncertainties that necessitate further research. This classification reflects the potential hazard but does not quantify the risk at typical exposure levels. JECFA’s risk assessments, which consider exposure levels, maintain that aspartame is safe within the established ADI.

ICBA Africa’s activities align with broader industry efforts to engage with governments and stakeholders in Africa, advocating for nutrition policies grounded in scientific evidence. Yet, independent verification of the roundtables’ influence on policy or regulation remains limited, as no official government documents or public statements link these engagements to specific legislative or regulatory outcomes.

In summary, ICBA Africa is advancing dialogue on the role of low- and no-calorie sweeteners within nutrition policy discussions across multiple African nations. While international safety assessments support the use of certain sweeteners within established limits, questions about their long-term health effects and the appropriateness of their use for weight and disease prevention continue to be subjects of scientific investigation and debate.