IOM Meeting Targets Front-of-Package Labeling

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has announced a February 2, 2010, public meeting in Washington, D.C., to solicit government perspectives on front-of-package nutrition labeling systems. The IOM Committee on Examination of Front-of-Package Nutrition Rating Systems and Symbols has invited input from various government agencies and study sponsors, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Created in response to a congressional mandate, the committee is working on behalf of CDC and FDA to review “the elements of the nutrition rating criteria and science underlying the front-of package systems.” In particular, the group is gathering information on (i) “front-of-package systems being used by manufacturers, supermarkets, health organizations, and governments in the United States and abroad”; (ii) “the purpose and overall merits of front-label nutrition icons”; (iii) “the criteria underlying the systems and . . . their scientific basis”; and (iv) the “advantages and disadvantages of various approaches for adults and children.” The committee will then publish a 2010 report offering its recommendations for a second research phase that “would consider the potential benefits of a single, standardized front-of-package food guidance system regulated by the Food and Drug Administration and would develop conclusions about which system(s) are most effective in promoting health and how to maximize the use and effectiveness of the system(s).”