Burger King has reportedly dropped one of its suppliers after finding traces of horse DNA in beef provided for sale in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The restaurant chain apparently tested its own products in the wake of a Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) investigation that allegedly found horse DNA in beef patties and meals linked to three processing plants, one of which apparently received its product from a Polish distributor. “Our independent DNA tests results on product taken from Burger King® restaurants were negative for any equine DNA. However, four samples recently taken from the Silvercrest plant have shown the presence of very small trace levels of equine DNA,” said a company statement on PR Newswire. “This product was never sold to our restaurants. Within the last 36 hours, we have established that Silvercrest used a small percentage of beef imported from a non-approved supplier in Poland. They…
Duke University has announced the selection of Kelly Brownell, who currently directs Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, as dean of its Sanford School of Public Policy. According to a January 30, 2013, news release, Brownell will replace the Sanford School’s founding dean, Bruce Kuniholm, as head of undergraduate and graduate studies, which focus on “child and family policy, national security, international development and many other issues facing society.” The Sanford School’s announcement highlights Brownell’s work on nutrition policy, as well as his highly publicized stance against “big sodas” and his contributions to both the public and academic discourse on the topic of obesity. “In Kelly Brownell we have a new dean ready to take the Sanford School to the next level after the superb leadership of Bruce Kuniholm,” said Duke Provost Peter Lange. “Kelly has an extraordinary record as a researcher while also being deeply committed…
Apparently motivated in part by an online petition started by a 15-year-old from Mississippi, PepsiCo has reportedly decided to remove brominated vegetable oil (BVO), a flame retardant, from Gatorade®. Sarah Kavanagh posted the petition on Change.org after she read about studies linking BVO to possible health effects, and it was signed by more than 200,000 who agreed with her call for its removal. Additional information about the petition appears in Issue 463 of this Update. The company will not remove BVO from Mountain Dew® products. A company spokesperson reportedly said that PepsiCo has been testing alternatives for about a year, but because it continues to believe that the ingredient is safe, was not going to change the formulation until the petition met with such a response. Kavanagh taped a segment for “The Dr. Oz Show” and visited The New York Times while she was in New York. When she learned about…
Without admitting liability, Dole Food Co. has reportedly settled a putative class action that claimed the company misrepresented its environmental practices in Guatemala. Laderer v. Dole Food Co. Inc., No. 12-09715 (C.D. Cal., motion to dismiss filed January 26, 2013). According to the complaint, the plaintiff would not have purchased the company’s bananas or “paid as much for them,” had he known that its “production methods contaminate water supplies, destroy wetlands, cause flooding, destroy the crops of local communities, and/or cause illnesses in children.” The complaint cited company materials indicating its “unwavering commitment” to “environmental responsibility and social accountability” and alleged violation of consumer fraud laws. Under the agreement, “[i]n coordination with social programs already undertaken by Dole’s independent grower in Guatemala, Dole and the non-profit organization Water and Sanitation Health, Inc. will collaborate together on a water filter project to assist the local communities in Guatemala.” According to the company, its…
In addition to a lawsuit filed in Illinois and two filed in New Jersey, a fourth has been filed against Subway Sandwich Shops Inc. in Pennsylvania, alleging that the company’s “Footlong” sandwich “consistently measures significantly less than twelve inches in length.” Roseman v. Subway Sandwich Shops, Inc., No. 130102647 (Philadelphia Cty. Pa. Ct. Com. Pl., filed January 24, 2013). Information about two of the other lawsuits appears in Issue 468 of this Update. The Pennsylvania complaint alleges that this size discrepancy “is not an accident” and that the company knew about the discrepancy “since Subway named its large sandwich the ‘Footlong’ sometime prior to January 24, 2007.” Seeking to certify a class of all persons who purchased a “Footlong” sandwich from a Pennsylvania Subway restaurant since that date, the plaintiff, a New Jersey resident who purports to work in Pennsylvania and regularly purchased the disputed sandwiches in Philadelphia, alleges violations of…
A California resident has filed a putative nationwide class action against Nestlé USA, Inc., claiming that its use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (trans fat) in many of its frozen pizza brands, including DiGiorno®, Stouffer’s® and California Pizza Kitchen® violates California’s Unfair Competition Law and constitutes a nuisance under California Civil Code §§ 3479-3493. Simpson v. Cal. Pizza Kitchen, No. 13-164 (S.D. Cal., filed January 21, 2013). In addition to monetary damages, she seeks an order requiring the company to “cease using artificial trans fat as an ingredient in the Nestle Trans Fat Pizzas.” While the complaint includes detailed information about the purported risks of consuming trans fats and notes that California forbids its use in schools or restaurants in amounts greater than a half-gram per serving, nowhere does she allege what quantity of trans fat is used in the defendants’ products or whether the products are mislabeled. Plaintiff Katie…
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Belgian brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (ABI) and Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo S.A.B. de C.V., seeking to enjoin ABI’s June 28, 2012, acquisition of Modelo. United States v. Anheuser Busch InBev SA/NV, No. 13-127 (D.D.C., filed January 31, 2013). DOJ contends that the $20.1 billion deal, which would combine the largest and third largest beer companies in the United States, “would substantially lessen competition for beer in the United States as a whole and in 26 metropolitan areas across the United States, resulting in consumers paying more for beer and having fewer new products from which to choose.” According to the complaint, Modelo is the only major beer company that has consistently resisted ABI’s annual price increases and has gained a majority share of some markets in California, New York and Texas by pursuing an aggressive marketing strategy with innovative…
Focusing on recent research into food addiction, a review article published in the Journal of Adolescent Health discusses “the need for multilevel interventions that go beyond simple behavioral approaches” in low- and middle-income counties (LMICs) with increasing adolescent obesity rates. Albert Lee and Susannah Gibbs, “Neurobiology of Food Addiction and Adolescent Obesity Prevention in Low- and Middle-Income Countries,” Journal of Adolescent Health, January 2013. The article argues that “advances in the understanding of neurobiology may provide important guidance in shaping how obesity is addressed in LMICs,” where changes in global food production have prompted many consumers to shift “from consuming meals prepared at home to consuming mass-produced processed foods that are high in sugar, salt, and artificial ingredients.” Citing numerous studies that have investigated the neurobiology of food addiction and its alleged similarities to substance abuse, the authors ultimately credit the current body of literature with suggesting that “lifestyle- or willpower-based models…
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) researchers recently published a study claiming that consumers found it easier to compare food items with singleserving or dual-column nutrition facts (NF) labels as opposed to the NF labels currently in use. Lando and Lo, “Single-LargerPortion-Size and Dual-Column Nutrition Labeling May Help Consumers Make More Healthful Food Choices,” Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, February 2013. Scientists with FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition apparently asked 9,482 adults to determine the healthfulness of a single product or compare the nutrition information on two products using one of the following NF configurations: (i) a single-column format listing two servings per container; (ii) a dual-column format listing two servings per container, with one column showing NFs per serving and one column showing NFs per container; and (iii) a single-column format listing a larger single serving per container. Within each of these formats, “there were…
In an effort to combat marketing to children, a Washington, D.C.-based organic grocer has stopped stocking products whose packaging features cartoon characters from books, movies and TV programs. According to a MOM’s Organic Market news release, products such as Dora the Explorer frozen soybeans will be replaced with alternatives in cartoon-free packaging. “Marketing to children is wrong and should be illegal,” said MOM’s founder and CEO Scott Nash. “Advertising is a shady game. It focuses on creating a shallow emotional attachment instead of pointing out the merits of a product. Unfortunately, it works—and young children are particularly susceptible.” “Using beloved media characters to sell kids on a particular brand of food is wrong, even if it’s healthy food,” said Susan Linn, Director of the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood. “Children should not be trained to pick foods based on the cartoon on the box. We congratulate MOM’s for taking…
