Nestlé faces criticism over added sugar in Cerelac baby food sold in Morocco. The National Federation of Consumer Associations in Morocco is demanding that Nestlé remove added sugar from all baby food products it sells in the country — pointing to a stark disparity between what Moroccan parents are buying and what European and Swiss consumers receive. In Switzerland, where Nestlé is headquartered, the company’s baby cereal products contain no added sugar. The same is true across European markets. But in Morocco, lab tests show the same products contain an average of 5.8 grams of added sugar per serving — equivalent to roughly one and a half sugar cubes.
The federation’s press release cites a study by Swiss organization Public Eye, which collected around 100 Cerelac products sold across 20 African countries and submitted them to laboratory analysis at the reference lab Inovalys. The results were striking: more than 90% of the products tested contained added sugar. The highest level found was 7 grams of added sugar per serving — nearly two sugar cubes — in the Cerelac with Fruit product sold in Morocco.
In Switzerland, where the company is headquartered, Nestlé’s baby cereal products contain no added sugar. All Cerelac products for children from six months of age, sold in European markets, are sold without added sugar. The same Wheat Cerelac sold without added sugar in the UK and Germany contains nearly 6 grams of added sugar per serving in Morocco.
— National Federation of Consumer Associations · Press release, May 20, 2026
Hidden from Parents — and Marketed as Healthy
What makes the situation more serious, the federation says, is that Nestlé does not disclose the quantity of added sugar on the nutritional information printed on products sold in Morocco — keeping it hidden from consumers. At the same time, Nestlé promotes its Cerelac products in Morocco as nutritionally superior, describing them as high in energy, proteins, vitamins, and minerals, and suitable for every stage of a child’s development. The federation argues this leads parents to believe they are buying a healthy product.
WHO guidelines, the federation notes, explicitly call for preventing the addition of sugar to baby foods — stating that early exposure to sugar can create a lasting preference for sweet foods and is a major risk factor for obesity. Cerelac products are marketed for children from six months of age and are among the most widely consumed baby foods in Morocco, where Nestlé controls approximately 80% of the market.
