The Good Food Institute (GFI), with a group of plant-based and “clean” meat companies, has sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) responding to a petition filed by the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association requesting that the agency restrict the definitions of “beef” and “meat” to products derived from live animals. GFI argues that USDA cannot grant the petition because the agency lacks authority over plant-based products, which are governed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. USDA is “authorized only to regulate meat labels to protect the health and welfare of consumers, not to prop up an industry or favor one production method over another,” the group asserts. In addition, the group argues that plant-based or clean meat product labels that “clearly and accurately disclose the nature of the product” do not violate the labeling requirements of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act or the Federal Meat Inspection…
Bai Brands faces a potential class action alleging that it labels its Bai fruit-flavored beverages as containing “natural” ingredients but fails to disclose the inclusion of artificial malic acid. Branca v. Bai Brands, LLC, No. 18-0757 (S.D. Cal., filed April 19, 2018). The plaintiff alleges that the ingredient list is misleading because it contains only the generic term “malic acid" while the product contains artificial d-malic acid. According to the complaint, both forms add a “tart, fruity” flavor to food and drink products. The complaint further alleges that the products, which are named for fruits and fruit combinations, bear “pictorial representations” that “imply to the consumer by operation of law that the Products consist of and are flavored only with natural juices and fruit flavors.” Alleging violations of California consumer-protection statutes, breach of warranties, negligent misrepresentation and fraud by omission, the plaintiff seeks class certification, damages, corrective advertising and attorney’s fees.
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld an advocacy group's challenge to the use of the term “natural” by Pret A Manger but rejected a challenge to the company’s advertising claim that its breads are fresh-baked at each location. Ads on Pret A Manger’s website and Facebook page claimed that the chain makes “handmade natural food,” “avoiding the obscure chemicals, additives and preservatives common to so much of the ‘prepared’ and ‘fast food’ on the market.” Pret A Manger argued that the ads did not imply that it uses only natural ingredients or that its food is additive- and preservative-free; rather, the terminology was used to express the company's mission, which is partly to “avoid (as opposed to entirely eliminate) ‘obscure’ (as opposed to all)” chemicals. ASA upheld the challenge, determining that consumers were likely to interpret the claims to mean that the chain’s food was “natural” and free from…
The United Kingdom has announced plans to ban the sale of plastic straws and drink stirrers in an effort to combat plastic waste in oceans. Previous initiatives to further that goal have included a ban on microbeads in personal care products, fees for single-use plastic bags and a proposal for a deposit-return process for single-use drink containers. Plastic straws necessary for medical treatment may be exempted from the ban. "Alongside our domestic action, this week we are rallying Commonwealth countries to join us in the fight against marine plastics, with £61.4 million funding for global research and to improve waste management in developing countries," Prime Minister Theresa May said in a statement.
China’s Ministry of Commerce has reportedly announced that it will require importers of U.S.-grown sorghum to pay a 178.6 percent deposit in anticipation of anti-dumping tariffs, which may discourage imports and directly affect American growers. A Chinese investigation apparently concluded that U.S. sorghum is being dumped on the Chinese market, despite denials from U.S. officials. “This approach is in line with Chinese law and [World Trade Organization] rules; it aims at correcting unfair trade practices, maintaining normal trade and competition order,” Wang Hejun, director of the ministry’s trade remedy and investigation bureau, reportedly said in a statement.
As gene-edited foods advance and move “closer to supermarket shelves,” agricultural and biotechnology groups are looking to avoid a dispute over public perception of the technology, according to the Wall Street Journal. Gene-editing technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9, TALEN and zinc-finger nucleases are different from techniques that create genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which involve the insertion of genes from external species to create plants with new characteristics. In contrast, gene-editing technology allows researchers to alter the plant’s DNA; the industry reportedly describes the process as “an extension of plant breeding, the centuries-old practice of crossing plant strains to create improved offspring." Industry regulators, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have indicated that they will not regulate gene-edited plants as strictly as those engineered with external DNA. However, the Non-GMO Project has barred gene-edited plants and animals from bearing its verification label, and opponents reportedly refer to the new technique as “GMO 2.0.”…
The U.S. House of Representatives' Agriculture Committee has introduced the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 (Farm Bill). The bill includes provisions on farm policy, regulatory reform, animal health and specialty and organic crops. According to the committee's highlights, "One of the most consistent complaints policymakers hear from farmers and ranchers is about burdensome regulations. The farm bill streamlines and reduces regulatory burdens. For example, the bill includes commonsense reforms to the onerous and conflicting Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation process regarding pesticide registration activities to ensure agricultural producers have access to the safest and most efficient modern crop protection tools." The bill would also establish a National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program, modeled on "the highly successful Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program."
The European Commission has proposed changes to directives governing food safety, marketing and distribution. According to an EU news release, the proposal would update the General Food Law, "which dates back from 2002 and thus needs an update," and "will give citizens greater access to information submitted to the European Food Safety Authority [(EFSA)] on approvals concerning the agri-food chain." The EU proposes to create a registry of commissioned studies available to the public and predicts that Member States will be more involved in EFSA's governance structure and scientific panels. The proposal also reportedly targets "dual foods," or foods marketed across the continent but produced and sold with ingredients of reduced quality in some areas. Additional details on the New Deal for Consumers, including proposed rules on collective redress, appear in Shook's Product Liability Bulletin.
In an essay for Science, a researcher argues that current evidence suggests microplastic contamination is widespread on land and in freshwater and calls for additional research into the effects of microplastics on human health and agricultural practices. Science's sister publication Science Advances also published a study examining organic fertilizer's role in spreading microplastics in the environment. According to the essay, researchers have found microplastic contamination in freshwater animals, clams, fish and birds, but research is limited on similar contamination in terrestrial environments. "Soils may act as an important long-term sink for microplastics," the researcher asserts. "This has been demonstrated via the presence of plastic microfibers and fragments in sewage sludge that is widely applied on vast expanses of agricultural land. Other large-scale sources of microplastics in soils are the weathering and disintegration of protective plastic sheeting (plasticulture) over agricultural fields and the fragmentation of plastic litter and plastic items in landfills."
The American Heart Association, Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition and Anti-Hunger and Nutrition Coalition have filed a lawsuit to appeal and amend the ballot title and summary of an initiative that would ban Washington's local governments from levying new taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). In re Ballot Title & Summary for Initiative No. 1634, No. 18-2-01924-34 (Wash. Super. Ct., filed April 9, 2018). The petition alleges that after Seattle's SSB tax took effect January 1, 2018, beverage industry groups filed the initiative in an attempt to stop other jurisdictions from adopting similar taxes. The petition also alleges that the ballot title and summary are “misleading and prejudicial” because they purport to ban new taxes on "groceries," a measure that the advocacy groups predict would be “disfavored” by voters.
