The World Hypertension League has issued a policy statement in the Journal of Clinical Hypertension arguing that salt sold for consumption "should be required to have a front of package health warning label." The article argues that high sodium consumption has been linked to many negative health risks and that reducing excess sodium is a target of the World Health Organization. "Some countries have banned restaurants from putting salt shakers on tables to reduce spontaneous addition of sodium to foods and increase awareness of the dangers of high‐sodium diets (eg, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico City)," the policy statement asserts. "To our knowledge, no country has required actual packages and containers of sodium chloride (salt) to have warning labels." The organization argues that warning labels would have "several potential benefits": (i) "it would increase awareness of the dangers of high‐sodium diets by people purchasing sodium and a reminder of the dangers by…
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A group of researchers from universities in Belgium, India, Switzerland and the United States have published a study examining how the use of antibiotics in meat production in low- and middle-income countries has affected antibiotic resistance worldwide. Van Boeckel et al., "Global trends in antimicrobial resistance in animals in low- and middle-income countries," Science, September 20, 2019. The researchers reportedly found growing rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in several countries, including India, China, Pakistan, Egypt and Brazil. "Regions affected by the highest levels of AMR should take immediate actions to preserve the efficacy of antimicrobials that are essential in human medicine by restricting their use in animal production. . . . [T]here is a window of opportunity to limit the rise of resistance by encouraging a transition to sustainable animal farming practices," the researchers concluded. "High-income countries, where antimicrobials have been used on farms since the 1950s, should support this…
A California federal court has refused to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that Danone US Inc. creates "a misleading impression regarding the health-promoting benefits" of its Silk Coconutmilk because it markets the product with an accurate representation of the product as free of cholesterol. Marshall v. Danone US, Inc., No. 19-1332 (N.D. Cal., entered September 13, 2019). Danone argued that the cholesterol representation was made in close proximity to the nutrition panel showing that the product contained three grams of saturated fat, but the court noted that the total is one gram more than permitted under federal regulations on the use of "cholesterol-free." "Danone is missing the point," the court held. It noted that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) "has expertise in, and responsibility for, determining what food labeling practices may mislead consumers" and that the agency "believes that consumers may understand 'cholesterol-free' to convey certain health benefits that…
A group of U.S. lawmakers, led by Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and James Comer (R-Ky.), have urged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to "quickly adopt a policy of enforcement discretion and to consider issuing an interim final rule to regulate [cannabidiol (CBD)] as a dietary supplement and food additive while simultaneously moving forward with a robust framework for evaluating the safety and accurate labeling of these products." The letter stated that the agency's "current regulatory posture on CBD has created significant regulatory and legal uncertainty for participants in this quickly evolving industry. We are discouraged by FDA's estimation that a rulemaking process could span 3 to 5 years. We believe there are more expeditious measures that FDA could take that would establish regulatory clarity while pursuing enforcement actions against bad actors." In the U.S. Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly took a different path in an effort to…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has announced a "final rule to modernize swine slaughter inspection and bring it into the 21st century." The rule "amends the regulations to require all swine slaughter establishments to develop written sanitary dressing plans and implement microbial sampling to monitor process control for enteric pathogens that can cause foodborne illness" and "allows market hog establishments to choose if they will operate under [the New Swine Slaughter Inspection System] or continue to operate under traditional inspection." In April 2019, The Washington Post compared the proposed rule to the relationship between aircraft manufacturers and the Federal Aviation Administration, and FSIS responded with a press release stating, "Shame on you, Washington Post. This story earns you at least four Pinocchios."
The National Advertising Division (NAD) has recommended that Clemens Food Group and its flagship brand, Hatfield Quality Meats, "discontinue the claim 'Ethically Raised by Family Farmers Committed to a Higher Standard of Care, Governed by Third Party Animal Welfare Audits.'" NAD acknowledged that the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) reviewed the claim, but the "record here did not demonstrate that FSIS considered consumer impact or that it explained its reasoning with respect to its determination on the 'ethically raised' claim. Accordingly, NAD undertook its own review of the challenged claims." The challenger, Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), argued that the claim misled "a high percentage" of consumers "because they took the claim to mean that the animals’ treatment and living conditions exceed industry standards." NAD noted that AWI provided a consumer perception survey, and the board found the survey to be methodologically sound. Hatfield submitted "caretaker standards, third-party auditing and…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced "A New Era of Smarter Food Safety," a public meeting "to get input from a broad cross-section of stakeholders on a modern approach the Agency is taking to strengthen its protection of the food supply." The meeting, which will be held October 21, 2019, is intended to "foster a dialogue with our domestic and international regulatory and public health partners, industry, consumers, academia, and others," and input will "be used to shape an FDA Blueprint for a New Era of Smarter Food Safety."
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has announced that it sent warning letters to three companies selling "oils, tinctures, capsules, 'gummies,' and creams containing cannabidiol (CBD), a chemical compound derived from the cannabis plant." The announcement notes that the letters warn the companies—which have not been identified—that "it is illegal to advertise that a product can prevent, treat, or cure human disease without competent and reliable scientific evidence to support such claims." The agency states that each company marketed its CBD products as able to "treat or cure serious diseases and health conditions," such as relieving "even the most agonizing pain" or treating autism, anorexia, schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, traumatic brain injuries and other conditions. "In the letters, the FTC urges the companies to review all claims made for their products, including consumer testimonials, to ensure they are supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence. The letters also warn that selling CBD…
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and Consumer Reports have petitioned the Food Safety and Inspection Service, requesting the agency "clarify the labeling of processed meats." "Specifically, we ask that the agency cease requiring that such products be labeled 'Uncured,' and/or 'No Nitrate or Nitrite Added' when they have been processed using non-synthetic sources of nitrate and nitrite, such as celery powder, rather than traditional synthetic sources, such as sodium nitrite." The petition asserts that both "synthetic and non-synthetic nitrites and nitrates may cause cancer," and the petition coincided with the release of a Consumer Reports investigation purportedly finding that "consumers are confused by the 'No Nitrate or Nitrite Added' statements, which are currently accompanied by a fine-print disclaimer on product labels identifying the non-synthetic source of nitrates or nitrites." "We therefore urge the agency to stop requiring, and instead prohibit, the 'No Nitrate or Nitrite Added'…
Denmark has reportedly passed a law that will ban per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from cardboard and paper used for food packaging. "These substances represent such a health problem that we can no longer wait for the EU," Denmark's food minister is quoted as saying. Recycled paper may continue to be used if the PFAS compounds are separated from food with a barrier. PFAS compounds have come under scrutiny in both the United States and Europe as agencies research the effects of consuming the substances.
