The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced its decision to partially deregulate the Roundup Ready® sugar beets developed by the Monsanto Co. These genetically engineered (GE) sugar beets resist the company’s Roundup Ready® herbicide. A court previously determined that APHIS violated the National Environmental Policy Act by deregulating the sugar beets without conducting an environmental impact statement (EIS). APHIS’s interim action was taken on the basis of its finding of no significant impact on human health or the environment by the GE sugar beet root crops and will remain in effect until its EIS is completed in 2012. The agency’s action means that farmers can continue planting GE sugar beets under mandatory conditions that will restrict their movement and environmental release. According to APHIS, these conditions will ensure “that the implementation of this interim regulatory action will not result in any environmental impacts…
Category Archives U.S. Government and Regulatory Agencies
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration and the Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety have announced a February 9, 2011, public meeting in College Park, Maryland, to provide information and receive public comments on draft U.S. positions to be discussed at the 22nd session of the Codex Committee on Fats and Oils (CCFO) on February 21-25 in Penang, Malaysia. CCFO “is responsible for elaborating worldwide standards for fats and oils of animal, vegetable, and marine origin, including margarine and olive oil.” Agenda items include (i) “Draft Amendment to the Standard for Named Vegetable Oils; Inclusion of Palm Kernel Olein and Palm Kernel Stearin”; (ii) “Code Practice for the Storage and Transport of Edible Fats and Oils in Bulk”; (iii) “Proposed Draft Amendment to the Standard for Olive Oils and Olive Pomace Oils: Linolenic Acid Level”; (iv) “Proposal for New Work on a Standard for…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have released the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, “the federal government’s evidence-based nutritional guidance to promote health, reduce the risk of chronic diseases, and reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity through improved nutrition and physical activity.” Published every five years, the guidelines are based on the findings of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee and consideration of federal agency and public comments. The 2010 version encompasses “two overarching concepts” that tackle both obesity and poor nutritional content by urging Americans to (i) “maintain a healthy calorie balance over time to achieve and sustain a healthy weight” and (ii) “focus on consuming nutrient-dense foods and beverages.” To this end, the current guidelines feature 23 key recommendations for the general population and six key recommendations for specific populations, as well as tips “to help consumers translate the Dietary…
“Each year, federal inspectors find illegal levels of antibiotics in hundreds of older dairy cows bound for the slaughterhouse,” opens this article about the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) recent decision to begin testing milk from farms “that had repeatedly sold cows tainted by drug residue.” Concerned that “the same poor management practices which led to the meat residues may also result in drug residues in milk,” FDA evidently singled out approximately 900 dairy farms for testing that would include “two dozen antibiotics beyond the six that are typically tested for.” The new protocol also covered flunixin, “a painkiller and anti-inflammatory drug popular on dairy farms . . . which often shows up in the slaughterhouse testing.” Although the plan reportedly drew support from consumer advocates like the Center for Science in the Public Interest, it prompted a backlash from dairy farmers and state regulators who objected to the week-long…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued the first annual report on its Reportable Food Registry (RFR) designed to prevent foodborne illness outbreaks. Summarizing 2,240 online food safety reports from the food industry and public health officials between September 2009 and September 2010, the report “is a measure of our success in receiving early warning problems with food and feed,” states FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods Michael Taylor in the preface. Report findings apparently show that 37.6 percent of the reported food hazards were caused by Salmonella, 34.9 percent by “undeclared allergens/intolerances” and 14.4 percent by Listeria. The report highlighted “two particularly significant issues in multiple commodity groups that require attention”: (i) Salmonella found in such products as spices and seasonings, produce, animal feed and pet food, nuts and seeds; and (ii) allergens and intolerances in fare including baked goods, fruit and vegetable products, prepared foods, dairy, and candy.…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a strategic plan that outlines the 2011-2015 goals and objectives of the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS), which aims to protect “the health of Americans through safer food.” Calling the plan “a dynamic roadmap which outlines the program’s commitment to sustained food safety through monitoring and research,” FDA has requested comments by March 25, 2011. Established in 1996 by FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture in collaboration with state and local health departments, NARMS “monitors the susceptibility of enteric bacteria to antimicrobial agents of medical importance.” Its strategic goals are to (i) “develop, implement and optimize a shared database, with advanced data acquisition, analysis, and reporting tools”; (ii) “make sampling more representative and more applicable to trend analysis”; (iii) “strengthen collaborative research projects”; and “support international activities that promote food safety, especially those…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has issued an interim rule updating its highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) requirements for importing birds, poultry and hatching eggs. Because APHIS’s previous restrictions applied only to the H5N1 subtype of avian influenza, the new rule extends its purview to include any HPAI subtype, thus barring poultry imports from any country where these subtypes “are considered to exist.” Effective January 24, 2011, the interim rule also prohibits the importation of live poultry and birds that “have been vaccinated for any H5 or H7 subtype,” as well as their hatching eggs, since these imports “may produce false positive test results … during the required 30-day quarantine.” In addition, APHIS has banned live poultry, birds and hatching eggs “that have moved through regions where any HPAI subtype exists.” APHIS has invited comments on the interim rule before March 25, 2011.…
In a decision that prompted the promise of an immediate legal challenge, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that it will grant nonregulated status to genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa. According to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, “After conducting a thorough and transparent examination of alfalfa through a multi-alternative environmental impact statement (EIS) and several public comment opportunities, APHIS [the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service] has determined that Roundup Ready alfalfa is as safe as traditionally bred alfalfa.” The agency’s Record of Decision concludes that “alfalfa events J101 and J163 do not pose a greater plant pest risk than other conventional alfalfa varieties.” The House Agriculture Committee conducted a public forum January 20, 2011, to discuss matters relating to the USDA’s anticipated action on GE alfalfa’s deregulation. The agency had proposed several options, including partially deregulating GE alfalfa and establishing isolation distances and geographic limits on where the crop is…
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that final approval was given to a settlement reached with a Nestlé S.A. subsidiary over claims that its children’s drink, BOOST Kid Essentials®, conferred specific health benefits, such as reducing the risk of colds and flu and reducing the duration of acute diarrhea. More information about the settlement appears in Issue 356 of this Update. And the summary of a related lawsuit that the National Consumers League filed against the company can be found in Issue 360 of this Update. The FTC said that this case was the agency’s “first one challenging advertising for probiotics.” See FTC News Release, January 18, 2011.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a final rule establishing a voluntary labeling program for “biobased” products made from renewable biological ingredients. Part of the USDA BioPreferred Program, which also administers procurement preferences for federal agencies, the labeling initiative applies to those products certified as containing a prescribed amount of renewable plant, animal, marine, or forestry material. According to a January 19, 2011, press release, “This new label will clearly identify biobased products made from renewable resources, and will promote the increased sale and use of these products in the commercial market and for consumers.” The BioPreferred Program has apparently designated “approximately 5,100 biobased products” in 50 categories, but estimates that “there are 20,000 biobased products currently being manufactured in the United States.” As USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan stated, “Today’s consumers are increasingly interested in making educated purchasing choices for their families. This label will make those…
