The Swiss government has reportedly banned the culinary practice of boiling live lobsters, mandating that the lobsters must be killed instantly by “mechanical destruction” or stunned before they are killed. Passed in response to concerns over studies that suggest crustaceans such as lobsters and crabs can feel pain, the law also outlaws transport of live crustaceans on ice, instead requiring that “aquatic species must always be kept in their natural environment." Experienced chefs may also use a traditional method of inserting a sharp knife into the lobster’s head to kill it quickly. The law takes effect March 1, 2018.
Category Archives Legislation, Regulations and Standards
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched a consultation on its draft protocol for its scientific opinion on free sugars. The protocol responds to five member states' request seeking "a science-based cut-off value for a daily exposure to added sugars from all sources (i.e. sucrose, fructose, glucose, starch hydrolysates such as glucose syrup, high-fructose syrup and other isolated sugar preparations used as such or added during food preparation and manufacturing) which is not associated with adverse health effects." EFSA will not accept comments "related to policy or risk management aspects, which are out of the scope of EFSA's activity." Comments will be accepted until March 4, 2018.
After California voters approved the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Prop. 65), the state's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) began publishing a list of chemicals "known to cause cancer or birth defects or other reproductive harm." Under the statute, companies must warn consumers about potential exposure to a listed chemical unless the exposures are low enough to pose "no significant risk" of the harms targeted by the provision. OEHHA's Prop. 65 actions can often precede similar efforts in other states, making California a primary battleground for regulations and bellwether cases. Prop. 65's list of chemicals must be updated annually to add chemicals "known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity," supported by "scientifically valid testing." The addition of a chemical can be a contentious process as the science supporting the addition is debated. For example, bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical found in plastics and epoxy…
A state senator in Pennsylvania has reportedly announced plans to introduce a bill that would bar any municipality in the state from levying a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). If enacted, the bill could invalidate the 1.5-cent-per-ounce tax that took effect in Philadelphia in January 2017 after a failed challenge in court. Although Rep. Mark Mustio (R-Allegheny) represents part of the Pittsburgh area, he has been critical of the effect of the tax on Philadelphia retailers, claiming that grocery stores have experienced as much as a 20 percent drop in revenues as consumers crossed over to suburban counties to buy SSBs and other items.
The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced a proposal to allow some employers to use tip sharing among tipped and non-tipped workers, rescinding portions of the tip regulations in the Fair Labor Standards Act. The proposal would apply only to employers who pay the full minimum wage to employees and do not take a tip credit. DOL will accept public comment on the proposed changes until January 4, 2018.
After reviewing an ad for Subway’s “Fresh Fit for Kid’s Meal” featuring premium toys and offering a sweepstakes for a tablet, the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) has recommended that the restaurant chain clearly disclose material information and avoid sales pressure when advertising to children. CARU determined that while the contest rules were available on Subway’s website, the ad itself did not disclose that the contest was only open to those 18 and older, did not provide a free means of entry and did not disclose the odds of winning the tablet. CARU also found that the language “Hurry into Subway … otherwise you’ll miss out” could create undue sales pressure on children. CARU recommended that future ads contain audible disclosures understandable to children, and Subway agreed to take the recommendations into account.
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a challenge to a Heinz television ad for canned beans that claimed the beans contained similar levels of protein, fiber and fat as those in a protein shake. The ad showed a man drinking a beverage that he described as “supercharged with high fibre and minimal fat,” and although the beverage was not labeled or identified, ASA decided most consumers would conclude the man was drinking a protein shake. While the ad did not directly compare the nutritional benefits of beans to those of protein drinks and the ad’s nutritional claims for beans were substantiated, ASA ruled that Heinz made a nutrition claim prohibited by broadcast codes.
The Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes (DGCCRF), a French agency for consumer affairs and fraud prevention, has reportedly tested samples of consumer goods throughout France and found titanium dioxide in 17 of the 19 samples. DGCCRF reportedly found nanoparticles in confectionery, sauces, spices, cake toppings and decorations that did not include the ingredient on package labeling as required by EU regulations. The European Food Safety Authority has approved the use of titanium dioxide but has not set an acceptable daily limit for the additive due to lack of data.
PLOS has published an article asserting that in 1970, the Sugar Research Foundation (SRF) terminated its funding of research into the health risks of sugar and did not publish the research results. C. Kearns, et al., “Sugar industry sponsorship of germ-free rodent studies linking sucrose to hyperlipidemia and cancer: An historical analysis of internal documents,” PLOS Biology, November 21, 2017. Echoing a September 2016 JAMA article also from the University of California, San Francisco Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, the article reportedly claims the research showed that sugar increased high triglyceride levels and was a possible carcinogen.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a final determination that the country of origin of coffee beans is the country in which the coffee beans are roasted. CBP ruled that “roasting green coffee beans substantially transforms the beans into a new and different article of commerce." The agency issues country-of-origin rulings “for the purpose of granting waivers of certain ‘Buy American’ restrictions in United States law or practice” for government procurement.
