The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), Agricultural Research Service, and Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion have announced a public meeting to discuss approaches to reduce sodium consumption. The November 10, 2011, public meeting in Silver Spring, Maryland, will provide a forum for the agencies to hear directly from interested parties and will help inform possible future regulation. Comments are requested by November 29. FDA and FSIS had previously requested “comments, data, and evidence relevant to the dietary intake of sodium as well as current and emerging approaches designed to promote sodium reduction.” Additional details about the open dockets on dietary sodium intake appear in Issue 409 of this Update. See Federal Register, October 12, 2011.
Category Archives Issue 413
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has determined that text included in the preambles to three regulations adopted over the past 10 years and purporting to preempt state law “are not legally justified.” The agency reviewed all of its regulations in response to President Barack Obama’s (D) May 20, 2009, memorandum outlining the administration’s preemption policy. The three affected regulations involve labeling rules for prescription drugs, biological products and medical devices. FDA also clarified the preemption language in other regulations, including those on food labeling and specifically cited “74 FR 2443, January 15, 2009,” which proposed amending the labeling for yogurt products. According to the agency, the preamble, which discusses the rule’s “pre-emptive effect, in that it would preclude states from issuing any … requirements … that are not identical to those required by the final rule,” failed to “acknowledge the applicability limitation set forth in section 6 (c) (2)…
According to a news source, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is poised to prohibit the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and sippy cups in response to a petition filed by the American Chemistry Council. A council spokesperson apparently stated during an October 7, 2011, press briefing that while scientific data and government assessments have declared the chemical safe and U.S. manufacturers ceased making these products with the plasticizer in response to market demand, the council took the action because of “quite a bit of legislative activity around a product that doesn’t exist” and “[c]onfusion about these products has become an unnecessary distraction to consumers, legislators and state regulators.” An environmental advocate reportedly characterized the council’s petition as a “stunning reversal,” noting that the “industry spent millions this year fighting efforts in California and other states to ban BPA in baby bottles and sippy cups.” The Environmental…
The House Energy & Commerce Committee held a hearing on October 12, 2011, to consider “Food Marketing: Can ‘Voluntary’ Government Restrictions Improve Children’s Health?” Speaking for the committee, Chair Fred Upton (R-Mich.) concluded that an interagency working group tasked with developing standards for marketing food to children and teenagers had taken what appeared to be “a first step toward Uncle Sam planning our family meals.” Agency witnesses, such as Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Bureau of Consumer Protection Director David Vladeck, then testified that the proposed voluntary standards released in spring 2011 are undergoing “significant revisions” to allay the concerns of industry stakeholders. Among other matters, the FTC has determined that (i) “with the exception of certain in-school marketing activities, it is not necessary to encompass adolescents ages 12 to 17 within the scope of the covered marketing”; (ii) “philanthropic activities, charitable events, community programs, entertainment and sporting events, and theme parks…
U.S. Senators Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) and Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.) have introduced a bill (S. 1662) that focuses on the potential risks of products containing nanomaterials. The Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Act of 2011 would establish a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) program to conduct the scientific research needed to evaluate the health and safety of common nanotech products and develop safety practices for companies using the technology. The measure would authorize $48 million for the program over three years starting in fiscal year 2013; the lawmakers said the FDA laboratories and research facilities suited to conduct the studies are located in their states. The senators claim that more than 800 commercial uses of nanotechnology are currently known and more than 1,300 consumer nanotechnology products, including cell phones, MP3 players and food packaging, are available on the market. The National Science Foundation estimated in 2010 that new nanotechnology-based products would create 2…
12
