The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that parts of an Ohio law regulating the use of labeling on dairy products from cows not treated with growth hormones violate the First Amendment. Int’l Dairy Foods Ass’n v. Boggs, Nos. 09-3515/3526 (6th Cir., decided September 30, 2010). The court also upheld other provisions and remanded parts of the rule relating to antibiotics and pesticides for further proceedings. Thus, the court overturned, in part, a district court determination that upheld most of the rule’s provisions. The Ohio Director of Agriculture adopted a rule in May 2008 that (i) prohibited dairy producers from claiming their milk was hormone-free (a composition claim) and (ii) placed stringent restrictions on the use of the claim “this milk is from cows not supplemented with rbST [recombinant bovine somatotropin or recombinant bovine growth hormone (rbGH)]” (a production claim). Among other matters, the latter require verification, and contiguous…
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North Carolina has reportedly become the most recent state to adopt a definition for “pure honey” that beekeepers hope will get fake honey off the market. Because Americans consume some 350 million pounds of honey annually, but domestic producers produce just 150 million pounds, there is apparently a financial incentive for importers and others to sell honey cut with additives such as corn syrup. Other states that currently regulate honey include California, Florida and Wisconsin. While the Food and Drug Administration has undertaken efforts to stop the sale of chemically contaminated honey, the agency is also reportedly considering a petition seeking to establish a national standard. See USA Today, September 25, 2010.
The Florida Board of Education is reportedly considering a ban on chocolate milk and sugary beverages in the state’s public schools. Board members evidently tabled the issue last spring in anticipation of federal government action, but recently decided to move forward to hear opinions from physicians and researchers on whether such a ban would improve children’s health. Hearings will be held over the next two months, with possible legislation coming in December. “When you think about it, we probably have a million overweight or obese children in our schools,” board member John Padget was quoted as saying. “I think the clock is ticking in terms of personal health.” Board member Susan Story reportedly wants the board to consider a possible ban on other foods sold in schools, including chips and ice cream. “To me, it’s a bigger issue that needs to be looked at and not a chocolate milk-versus-white milk…
California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is seeking public comments on draft changes to those Proposition 65 (Prop. 65) regulatory provisions addressing no observable effect levels for listed chemicals. According to OEHHA, “[t]hese regulations set out the procedures and criteria for determining an exposure level where there would be no observable effect,” and the proposed changes would “clarify these procedures and criteria.” Comments are requested by October 31, 2010. Prop. 65 requires companies to provide warnings before exposing people to chemicals known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. OEHHA is the lead agency implementing the law and maintains the Prop. 65 regulations. The agency has announced the availability of updated hazard identification materials for two chemicals widely used in industry and also formed in certain foods during processing. According to the updated materials, 1,3-Dichloro-2- propanol (1,3-DCP) and 3 Monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD), were added to the Prop.…
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) Chair Diana Banati has reportedly dismissed conflict-of-interest allegations arising from her involvement with the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI), a public health nonprofit whose membership includes academic, government and industry scientists. According to Greens MEP José Bové, Banati failed to disclose her industry ties as an ILSI board member when installed at EFSA. “The commission should never have approved her appointment given her clear links to the food industry, which is completely at odds with the need for independence at the EFSA,” Bové was quoted saying. “There can be no alternative but to replace Banati as chair of the EFSA.” Bové has purportedly raised the issue to cast doubt on EFSA’s credibility as the European Commission looks to reform both the food safety body and the approval process for genetically modified organisms. A Banati spokesperson, however, has publicly denied the claims, noting that the chair’s…
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) panel on food contact materials, enzymes, flavorings, and processing aids has released its latest risk assessment for bisphenol A, concluding that there was not any “new evidence which would lead them to revise the current Tolerable Daily Intake [TDI] for BPA of 0.05 mg/kg body weight set . . . in its 2006 opinion and re-confirmed in its 2008 opinion.” The CEF panel undertook the reassessment at the request of the European Commission, which directed scientists to (i) decide on the basis of recent literature whether to update the TDI; (ii) “assess a new study on possible neurodevelopmental effects”; and (iii) advise on a risk assessment made by the National Food Institute at the Technical University of Denmark. Although one minority opinion evidently raised questions about “adverse health effects below the level used to determine the current TDI,” panel members agreed on shortcomings in…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reportedly decided that it will regulate perchlorate, a manmade and naturally occurring chemical used in rocket fuel, explosives and fireworks. While it has not yet established an exposure limit, EPA’s Office of Water sent the Office of Management & Budget a draft notice for its review, outlining EPA’s decision to regulate the chemical by setting a maximum contaminant level under the Safe Drinking Water Act, said a news source. The Food and Drug Administration has found perchlorate in a number of foods, most notably spinach, lettuce and tomatoes, and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reported that it is widespread. GAO notes that the chemical “can disrupt the uptake of iodide in the thyroid, potentially interfering with thyroid function and negatively affecting fetal and infant brain development and growth.” According to a press report, EPA’s decision could pose a challenge to chemical and…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a meeting of the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Advisory Committee, which reviews and evaluates available scientific data concerning the safety of products that might transmit spongiform encephalopathies such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and the bovine variant commonly known as mad cow disease. Agenda items for the October 28-29, 2010, meeting in Gaithersburg, Maryland, include (i) “FDA’s risk assessment for potential exposure to the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) agent in U.S.-licensed plasma-derived Factor VIII” and (ii) “labeling of blood and blood components and plasma-derived products, including plasma-derived albumin and products containing plasma-derived albumin, to address the possible risk of transmission of vCJD.” The committee will also discuss ways to reduce transmission risks and hear updates on the “development of devices to remove transmissible spongiform encephalopathy agents from blood components and chronic wasting disease.” FDA requests written comments by October 21, 2010. See Federal Register, September…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a draft strategic priorities document for fiscal years 2011-2015 that outlines four key cost-cutting strategic priorities and four strategic program goals designed to help FDA achieve its public health mission. According to an October 1, 2010, Federal Register notice, the four cost-cutting priorities seek to (i) “advance regulatory science and innovation,” (ii) strengthen the safety and integrity of the global supply chain,” (iii) “strengthen compliance and enforcement activities,” and (iv) “expand efforts to meet the needs of special populations.” Among the program goals, FDA has highlighted intentions to establish effective tobacco regulation as well as advance food safety and nutrition by ensuring the safety of the food supply from farm to table and promoting healthy dietary practices and nutrition. FDA will accept comments until November 1, 2010.
Pinnacle Foods Group LLC has reportedly agreed to reformulate its Log Cabin Syrup® after Vermont Representative Peter Welsh (D) called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate the company for selling a product in apparent violation of agency regulations. Welsh’s September 8, 2010, letter noted that the company’s “All Natural Syrup” contains caramel color, among other ingredients. Welsh suggested that consumers outside the state “who have come to expect quality from natural Vermont products may be fooled by this misleading labeling.” The product is apparently being sold in a beige plastic jug similar to real maple syrup packaging, raising the ire of maple syrup producers. While FDA has not defined the term “natural,” the agency allows it to be used if the claim is truthful and “the product does not contain added color, artificial flavors or synthetic substances,” according to an agency spokesperson. Claiming that its product “provides consumers…
