The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a determination revoking the generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status of partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), “the primary dietary source of industrially-produced trans fatty acids.” To comply with the declaratory order, food and beverage companies must remove PHOs from products by June 18, 2018, or request food additive approval for specific uses of PHOs. Concluding that there is no longer expert consensus as to the safe use of artificial trans fat in human food, FDA argues that the action is “expected to reduce coronary heart disease and prevent thousands of fatal heart attacks every year.” In the wake of its November 2013 tentative decision, the agency apparently received more than 6,000 comments from individuals, industry and trade associations, consumer groups, and government officials, the majority of which purportedly supported the reduction of trans fat in the food supply. “Studies show that diet…
Category Archives Issue 569
French restaurateurs and food critics are calling for new food-labeling rules after a documentary airing on France 2 reported that some of the country’s food manufacturers have been using vegetable fat-based substitutes for fresh milk when producing cheese products. In “Artificial Cheese on Your Plate” (“Du Faux Fromage Dans Votre Assiette”), cheese producers are reportedly shown stocking bags of processed cheese made with water, vegetable fat, lactic acid, table salt, and potassium sorbate, while others are shown mixing genuine mozzarella with cheese made without milk to create a popular substitute known as “50-50.” Many of the cheese substitutes also contain palm oil. A nutritionist told the documentary producers that the cheese substitutes lack the positive qualities of real cheese because they contain saturated fat without providing calcium as well. See The Daily Telegraph, June 14, 2015. Issue 569
“In order to bolster its credibility, reflect objective science that has the public’s best interest in mind, and hold the food industry more accountable, it is paramount that ASN reconsider its financial ties to the junk food industry,” concludes public health lawyer and activist Michele Simon in an investigation that purports to expose conflicts of interest between the American Society for Nutrition (ASN) and various food and beverage companies. Among other things, Simon contends that “powerful junk food companies purchase ‘sustaining partnerships’ from ASN, gaining access to the nation’s leading nutrition researchers at their annual meetings, and in their policy positions.” Issue 569
A consumer has filed a putative class action against Ghirardelli alleging that the company deceptively advertised its white chocolate products as containing chocolate, white chocolate or cocoa butter. Vega-Encarnacion v. Ghirardelli Chocolate Co., No. 15-1821 (D.P.R., filed June 16, 2015). Three of the products at issue in the complaint were the subjects of an October 2014 class action settlement open only to consumers who purchased the product “in the United States,” so the Puerto Rican consumer seeks to represent those similarly situated in U.S. territories. Additional details about the settlement appear in Issue 540 of this Update. The complaint cites the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) definitions of “chocolate” and “white chocolate,” which include required levels of cacao-derived products such as cocoa butter. Ghirardelli’s white-chocolate products—baking chips, confectionery coating wafers and ground white chocolate flavor—do not contain any white chocolate as defined by FDA, but merely white-chocolate flavoring, the…
Echoing a lawsuit brought a week earlier by a competitor in the pepper category, a consumer has filed a proposed class action against McCormick & Co. alleging that the company underfills its tins of black pepper because it reduced the pepper in each tin by 25 percent but retained the traditional packaging size. Dupler v. McCormick & Co., No. 15-3454 (E.D.N.Y., filed June 15, 2015). Facing rising prices for black pepper, the complaint argues, McCormick has begun selling 1.5-ounce, 3-ounce and 6-ounce pepper products in place of its 2-ounce, 4-ounce and 8-ounce products, respectively, but continues to use the larger “iconic” packaging it used for decades. This “slack fill” violates the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the plaintiff argues, and she seeks to represent a New York class in an action for damages, an injunction and attorney’s fees. The unfair-competition suit against McCormick alleging violations of the Lanham Act and…
A consumer has filed a putative class action against H.J. Heinz Co. alleging that the company’s frozen microwave French fries and tater tots contain partially hydrogenated oil (PHO), which contains artificial trans fat, despite packaging that indicates the products contain “0g trans fat.” Backus v. H.J. Heinz Co., No. 15-2738 (N.D. Cal., filed June 18, 2015). The complaint asserts that any intake of trans fat is unsafe and cites the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s June 16, 2015, final determination that PHOs are not generally recognized as safe for any human food. The complaint further argues that the artificial trans fats in PHO cause several medical conditions such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. The plaintiff alleges violations of California unfair competition, false advertising and consumer legal remedies statutes and seeks class certification, damages, disgorgement of benefits, an injunction, and attorney’s fees. Issue 569
A California federal court has confirmed its ruling that a plaintiff in a class action against Twinings North America cannot pursue her claim of unjust enrichment because it duplicates her consumer protection claims. Lanovaz v. Twinings N. Am., No. 12-2646 (N.D. Cal., order entered June 10, 2015). Details about the court’s previous rulings narrowing the claims and certifying an injunctive class appear in Issues 485 and 521 of this Update. In her complaint, the plaintiff alleged that Twinings misbranded its green, black and white teas as a “natural source of protective antioxidants” despite failing to meet U.S. Food and Drug Administration standards for nutrient content claims. The court certified an injunctive class but denied the plaintiff’s unjust enrichment claim. The plaintiff, seeking certification for a damages class through that claim, filed a motion for reconsideration arguing that the damages available through the unjust enrichment claim were different from the damages available via…
A New Jersey federal court has again denied class certification to a trio of women suing Beam Global Spirits & Wine for allegedly misrepresenting Skinnygirl® Margaritas as using “only natural ingredients” despite containing sodium benzoate. Stewart v. Beam Global Spirits & Wine, Inc., No. 11-5149 (D.N.J., order entered June 8, 2015). Details about the court’s previous examination of certification appear in Issue 529 of this Update. The plaintiffs argued that the class could be ascertained through a three-level screening process designed to limit the number of fraudulent claims. The process would require potential claimants to provide a (i) claim form and receipt for the purchase of the product or (ii) a sworn affidavit with the dates, locations and prices of their Skinnygirl® Margarita purchases as well as a description of the bottle. In the latter case, the screeners would then check the potential claimants’ affidavits for accuracy to determine, for…
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Scientific Committee has published guidance for renewing “applications of genetically modified [GM] food and feed authorized under Regulation (EC) No. 1829/2003.” Describing “the data requirements for renewal applications, “ the guidance directs applicants seeking reauthorization of GM food and feed products to provide the following: (i) “a copy of the authorization”; (ii) “post-market monitoring and post-market environmental monitoring reports”; (iii) “systematic search and evaluation of literature”; and (iv) “updated bioinformatics and any additional documents or studies performed by or on behalf of the applicant during the authorization period.” In addition, EFSA asks applicants “to assess the collected information and conclude whether the previous risk assessment remains valid.” “GM food and feed listed under Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 are within the scope of this new guidance. These include all those plants that have already been assessed by EFSA–such as maize, oilseed rape, soybean and cotton,” explains…
The Environment and Agriculture committees of the European Parliament have approved a draft bill that would ban the cloning of all farm animals, their descendants and products derived from them. The legislation would prohibit both the cloning within the EU and the importation of cloned animals from other countries. “We are well aware that cloning is allowed in certain third countries that EU trades with, but we cannot allow these products to be placed on the EU market,” Giulia Moi, an Italian Member of the European Parliament, said in a press release. “We also want to ensure that cloning of animals would not become a common practice within the EU.” The proposed law would require the import certificates for animals, animal germinal products, food and feed of animal origin to indicate that the products are not derived from cloned animals. The European Parliament will vote on the bill at a…
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