While laws mandating disclosure of the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on food labels are debated in statehouses, independent organizations such as the Non-GMO Project are offering certification for non-GMO products. NPR tracked how a food company earns the “Verified” label from the Non-GMO Project, beginning with an Iowa-based company called FoodChain ID that guides companies through the process of certification. FoodChain ID first identifies all of the ingredients in the product—including those not actually listed on the label—such as “all the processing aids, the carriers and all the inputs that go into a product.” It then determines the source of each ingredient and input and individually verifies its seclusion from GMOs. “If there’s honey in cookies, for example,” NPR notes, “the company will have to show that the bees that make the honey aren’t feeding near genetically modified corn. When there’s even the smallest risk that an ingredient…
Category Archives Issue 552
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF) Healthy Eating Research initiative has published a January 2015 report seeking to close alleged loopholes in industry efforts to regulate the marketing of foods and beverages to children. Focusing on children younger than age 14, Recommendations for Responsible Food Marketing to Children notes that although new advertising standards have led to improved nutritional profiles for many products, these guidelines often exclude product packaging, in-store promotions, toy incentives, and other strategies from their definitions of child-directed marketing. To this end, the report offers model definitions that aim to cover diverse brand architectures as well as new media and venues for marketing activities. The authors recommend that companies restrict their advertising to products that meet nutritional criteria when (i) “children constitute 25 percent or more of the audience (e.g., viewers, listeners, readers, participants, or visitors) at the time of ad placement based on projected attendance,” (ii) “children are…
District attorneys in California’s Yolo, Sacramento and San Joaquin counties have reportedly filed a lawsuit in state court alleging that R.F. Palmer Co. advertised its “Too Tall Bunny” product in violation of the unfair business practices, false advertising and unfair competition provisions of the California Business and Professions Code. The chocolatier apparently packaged the chocolate bunny in a box similar in size to its competition but asserted that the bunny was “Too Tall” and displayed the ears in plastic popping out of the top of the box. The bunny sat on a cardboard insert at the bottom of the box, and without that insert, the bunny was the same size as other similar products, the prosecutors argued. The district attorneys reportedly reached an agreement with the Pennsylvania-based chocolatier bore filing the case to ensure compliance; the court issued a final judgment the same day—a civil penalty of $2,500 for each…
A Pennsylvania federal court has denied H.J. Heinz Co.’s motion for summary judgment in a lawsuit alleging that the company stole the idea for the “Dip & Squeeze” ketchup packet. Wawrzynski v. H.J. Heinz Co., No. 11-1098 (W.D. Penn., order entered January 7, 2015). The plaintiff asserts that he met with the company in 2008 and presented the idea for the dual-opening packet, but they never reached a deal; Heinz later released its Dip & Squeeze packet, which the plaintiff argues was too similar to his concept. The court noted that although Heinz presented evidence showing that it was actively developing a dual-function condiment container before meeting with the plaintiff, the plaintiff had also shown that Heinz had been unsuccessful in creating or marketing a feasible container. “Given the evidence presented by both parties to this lawsuit,” the court concluded, “whether either or both of Plaintiff’s ideas were novel and concrete…
A New York federal court has granted conditional class certification to plaintiffs employed by T.G.I. Friday’s who allege underpayment for side work and lack of payment for overtime work in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Flood v. Carlson Restaurants Inc., No. 14-2740 (S.D.N.Y., filed April 17, 2014). The restaurant employs as many as 42,000 tipped workers throughout the United States who are eligible to join the nationwide class. T.G.I. Friday’s argued that the named plaintiffs were not similar enough to merit class certification, but the court disagreed, finding that the plaintiffs’ “declarations and depositions—which cover eight T.G.I. Friday’s locations in four states—contain common allegations of FLSA violations, including Defendants’ denial of full minimum wage and overtime compensation for tipped workers.” The court dismissed the restaurant’s arguments on the merits of the case, noting that those issues could not be addressed at the class certification stage, and directed…
The U.S. Supreme Court has granted certiorari to a coalition of California raisin growers that challenged a federal rule requiring them to give a portion of their annual harvests to a crop-specific committee that in turn sells the reserves for export or donates them to school lunch programs or foreign governments. Horne v. USDA, No. 14-275 (U.S., certiorari granted January 16, 2015). The coalition contends that the portion of the harvest that its growers set aside constitutes a taking under the Fifth Amendment, which guarantees just compensation for such acts. They assert that for the 2002-2003 season, they were required to set aside 47 percent of their raisin crops, and the named plaintiffs were paid less than the cost of production; in the 2003-2004 season, they allegedly set aside 30 percent and were not paid at all. The coalition argues that, in a split from other circuits, the Ninth Circuit…
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavorings and Processing Aids (CEF) has issued a scientific opinion finding that bisphenol A (BPA) poses “no health concern for any age group from dietary exposure or aggregated exposure.” Published January 21, 2015, the scientific opinion assessed exposure in three ways: (i) “external (by diet, drinking water, inhalation, and dermal contact to cosmetics and thermal paper”; (ii) “internal exposure to total BPA (absorbed dose of BPA, sum of conjugated and unconjugated BPA)”; and (iii) “aggregated (from diet, dust, cosmetics and thermal paper), expressed as oral human equivalent dose (HED) referring to unconjugated BPA only.” Using new data and methodologies, EFSA previously established a temporary tolerable daily intake (t-TDI) for BPA at 4 micrograms per kilogram of body weight per day, from 50 µg/kg bw/day. This latest scientific opinion confirms that the highest estimates for human exposure to BPA…
State legislators in Wisconsin and Illinois have proposed bills that would ban the sale and distribution of powdered alcohol, which may enter the market in spring 2015 under the brand name Palcohol. Sen. Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee), who proposed the Wisconsin legislation, reportedly compared the product to the synthetic hallucinogenic drug known as “bath salts,” which the state approved if they were labeled “not for human consumption” before banning them in 2011. He also apparently expressed concern that people could snort powdered alcohol, sneak it into classrooms and sporting events, or mistake it for another powder and ingest it accidentally. Illinois State Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) proposed a similar measure as an amendment to the state’s existing Liquor Control Act of 1934, noting that his “public safety bill” would combat “people spiking beverages.” Similar legislation is also pending in Ohio, Colorado, Nebraska, Utah, and Indiana. Further details about powdered alcohol bans…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has proposed new standards that aim to reduce Salmonella and Campylobacter in “the poultry items that Americans most often purchase,” including ground chicken and turkey products as well as raw chicken breasts, legs and wings, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The proposed standards would require routine sampling throughout the year rather than infrequent sampling on consecutive days, and the allowed amounts of Salmonella in chicken parts, ground chicken and ground turkey would be lowered substantially. A USDA press release notes that the Food Safety and Inspection Service implemented standards for whole chickens in 1996, but “has since learned that Salmonella levels increase as chicken is further processed into parts.” See USDA News Release, January 21, 2015. Issue 552
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is soliciting comments on proposed amendments to the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA). The 1967 law requires that certain products carry labels with identifying information such as the source, content and quantity and specifically excludes—among other categories—meat products, poultry and alcohol beverages. FTC sought comments on the existing rules in March 2014 and used some of the suggested changes in the proposed amendments, which include (i) “modernizing the place-of-business listing requirement to incorporate online resources”; (ii) “eliminating obsolete references to commodities advertised using the terms ‘cents off,’ ‘introductory offer,’ and ‘economy size’”; and (iii) incorporating “a more comprehensive metric chart.” Comments must be received by March 30, 2015. See FTC News Release, January 22, 2015. Issue 552
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