Aurora Dairy Corp. and other defendants have filed motions to dismiss on preemption grounds in multidistrict litigation (MDL) filed on behalf of consumers who allege that the companies misled consumers by claiming their products are organic, when, in fact, they are not following organic standards and regulations. In re: Aurora Dairy Corp. Organic Milk Mktg. & Sales Practices Litig., No. MDL 1907 (E.D. Mo.), motions filed October 17, 2008). According to the defendants, the plaintiffs’ state-law claims would have the effect of rewriting national regulations for organic food production. Asserting that it holds valid organic certifications from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Aurora argues that the relief requested would “preclude Aurora from using the very seal that the USDA, through its duly-accredited certifying agents, has expressly authorized Aurora to use.” Co-lead counsel for plaintiffs was quoted as saying, “Aurora spends a lot of time arguing that plaintiffs are trying to regulate…
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The EFSA Scientific Committee is seeking comments on a draft scientific opinion that addresses engineered nanomaterials (ENM) used in food and feed applications. Acknowledging the limitations of currently available methods, the draft concludes that “established international approaches” are “a suitable starting point for case-by-case risk assessment of ENMs,” but warns against extrapolating scientific data derived from conventional chemical use. “Possible risks arise because ENM have particular characteristics, due in part to their small size and high surface areas,” the committee stated in an October 17, 2008, press release. “There is limited information on absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion, as well as the toxicity of ENM.” Comments will be accepted through the EFSA website until December 1, 2008. See GMA Biotechnology Digest, October 20, 2008.
The Canadian government has reportedly declared that bisphenol A (or BPA) is a hazardous substance, and Health Canada will begin drafting regulations to prohibit the importation, sale and promotion of baby bottles made with the chemical. The agency’s scientists apparently contend that the primary exposure for newborns and infants is through the use of such baby bottles, particularly when they are heated, and from the chemical’s migration into infant formula from cans lined with the substance. While the levels of exposure are evidently below those posing a health risk, the government decided to take the action as a precaution, citing research showing that “low-level exposure to BPA, particularly at sensitive life cycle stages, may lead to permanent alterations in hormonal, developmental or reproductive capacity.” Health Canada will also apparently work with industry to reduce bisphenol A in the linings of infant formula cans. Responding to the regulatory initiative, the Grocery…
NIEHS and the National Toxicology Program (NTP) have published a request for information, seeking “input on a number of key research areas that have been identified in recent evaluations of bisphenol A (BPA).” Submissions should be made online by December 1, 2008. Among the research needs identified are (i) “Studies of the concentrations of BPA and metabolites in human blood, urine, breast milk, amniotic fluid, placenta and other tissues, particularly in infants and young children”; (ii) “More complete assessment of sources of human exposure to BPA”; (iii) “The potential for effects on the immune system”; (iv) “The potential for metabolic disruptions leading to obesity, diabetes, or other metabolic disease”; and (v) “The potential for disruptions to the male reproductive tract including effects on sperm quantity and quality.” The information collected will apparently be used to develop future research and testing programs and may appear in future reports. See Federal Register, October…
The FTC has appointed Acting Chief Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell to oversee the antitrust hearing in the commission’s case against the 2007 merger of Whole Foods Market, Inc. and Wild Oats Markets, Inc. The administrative hearing is scheduled to begin February 17, 2009. FTC Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch presided over the scheduling conference in September 2008, and a news source indicated that Whole Foods objected to the possibility that he would be appointed to hear the matter. In its October 20 order, FTC notes that the FTC chair and commissioners, including Rosch, “are committed, subject to the bounds of reasonableness and fairness, to a just and expeditious resolution of any potential appeal from an Initial Decision filed by the Administrative Law Judge in this matter that may be taken to the full Commission.” The administrative proceedings are separate from collateral proceedings pursued in federal court. Further details about…
In an article appearing in the Journal of the American Medical Association, David Ludwig, M.D., and Marion Nestle, Ph.D, discuss the voluntary efforts that food corporations have undertaken to address the rising rates of obesity in the United States and then detail the counterproductive activities in which they allegedly continue to engage. David Ludwig & Marion Nestle, “Can the Food Industry Play a Constructive Role in the Obesity Epidemic?,” JAMA, October 14, 2008. According to the authors, food companies lobby against obesity-related public health campaigns and continue to market food of little nutritional quality to children. The article also cites research purportedly showing that the industry “has an especially insidious influence on the conduct of research and development of public health policy,” where industry-funded studies tend to reach industry favorable conclusions. While they recognize that the companies have an obligation to maximize their profits for the benefit of shareholders, Nestle and…
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, who gained renown with his cooking show “The Naked Chef,” has apparently launched an initiative designed to teach people how to cook in an effort to reduce the incidence of obesity in Great Britain. Starting in a city of 250,000 in northern England with one of the highest rates of obesity in the nation, Oliver’s “Pass it On” campaign will teach eight cooks 10 recipes; they must promise to teach two people who will teach two people and so on, until, in less than six months, the entire city will, in theory, be able to cook. Although the show is being aired only in the UK, a YouTube® clip of the first ten minutes of his opening television show about his new “Ministry of Food” is available for viewing. Oliver is apparently hoping that people who learn to cook easy, nutritious meals will be less likely…
The New York Times Magazine featured several prominent food writers in its October 12, 2008, food issue, which covered topics ranging from agricultural production to marketing strategies. Author Michael Pollan penned an open letter, titled “Farmer in Chief,” addressing the numerous food security challenges facing the next U.S. president. Pollan tells the president-elect that even as he copes with rising food prices and decreasing production, he must also “make reform of the entire food system one of the highest priorities of your administration: unless you do, you will not be able to make significant progress on the health care crisis, energy independence or climate change.” Going on to explain the complexities of modern agriculture and its dependence on oil, Pollan recommends that the administration adopt one core idea: “we need to wean the American food system off its heavy 20th-century diet of fossil fuel and put it back on a…
The attorneys general for Connecticut, Delaware and New Jersey have written to 11 companies asking them to discontinue the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and infant formula packaging. Attorneys General Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Anne Milgram (N.J.) and Joseph R. Biden III (Del.) apparently asked manufactures to “affirm [their] commitment to safe products for our children,” citing recent studies that purportedly link BPA to “potential health problems.” The letter also noted that U.S. Representatives John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) have called for a Senate bill to ban the substance in all children’s products, as well as an investigation spearheaded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). “The preventable release of a toxic chemical directly into the food we eat is unconscionable and intolerable,” Blumenthal was quoted as saying. “Credible, escalating laboratory evidence demonstrates that even low-dose exposure to BPA…
According to a news source, a migrant worker from southern Guangdong province has sued Sanlu Group Co., alleging that the melamine in its baby formula caused his 11-month-old son’s kidney stones. The lawsuit, which has not yet been accepted by the Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court, apparently seeks US$132,000 in damages. The plaintiff’s lawyer has reportedly indicated that he is planning to sue the Dairy Association in China for failing to properly supervise its member companies. More than 10,000 children have been hospitalized in China after drinking milk contaminated with melamine, which, in some batches of milk powder, has been found at levels of 6,196 parts per million. These levels far exceed the Health Ministry’s recently adopted permissible limit of one part per million for infant formula and 2.5 parts per million for liquid milk, milk powder and foods containing more than 15 percent milk. See Findlaw.com, October 10, 2008.
