A working group of California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) met on April 23, 2009, to consider how warnings under Proposition 65 could be provided to consumers of food products containing chemicals known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive harm. Participants discussed a draft proposal submitted by the California Grocers Association, California Retailers Association, California League of Food Processors, GMA, and American Beverage Association. It was the only proposed regulation to be submitted.

Generally speaking, the proposal offers food manufacturers the option of uploading product-related information to an OEHHA Web site, which could be used, in turn, by retailers to download information that could be made available to consumers via computer, notebook, kiosk, or other similar means. Stakeholders representing consumer interests would prefer that warning information be placed on each product or in close proximity to them. While no final decisions were made during this session, OEHHA Director Joan Denton pledged to move forward with input from each of the working group’s meetings and hopes to have a draft OEHHA regulation to discuss by August.

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For decades, manufacturers, distributors and retailers at every link in the food chain have come to Shook, Hardy & Bacon to partner with a legal team that understands the issues they face in today's evolving food production industry. Shook attorneys work with some of the world's largest food, beverage and agribusiness companies to establish preventative measures, conduct internal audits, develop public relations strategies, and advance tort reform initiatives.

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