The Canadian government has reportedly declared that bisphenol A (or BPA) is a hazardous substance, and Health Canada will begin drafting regulations to prohibit the importation, sale and promotion of baby bottles made with the chemical. The agency’s scientists apparently contend that the primary exposure for newborns and infants is through the use of such baby bottles, particularly when they are heated, and from the chemical’s migration into infant formula from cans lined with the substance. While the levels of exposure are evidently below those posing a health risk, the government decided to take the action as a precaution, citing research showing that “low-level exposure to BPA, particularly at sensitive life cycle stages, may lead to permanent alterations in hormonal, developmental or reproductive capacity.” Health Canada will also apparently work with industry to reduce bisphenol A in the linings of infant formula cans. Responding to the regulatory initiative, the Grocery…
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The FTC has appointed Acting Chief Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell to oversee the antitrust hearing in the commission’s case against the 2007 merger of Whole Foods Market, Inc. and Wild Oats Markets, Inc. The administrative hearing is scheduled to begin February 17, 2009. FTC Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch presided over the scheduling conference in September 2008, and a news source indicated that Whole Foods objected to the possibility that he would be appointed to hear the matter. In its October 20 order, FTC notes that the FTC chair and commissioners, including Rosch, “are committed, subject to the bounds of reasonableness and fairness, to a just and expeditious resolution of any potential appeal from an Initial Decision filed by the Administrative Law Judge in this matter that may be taken to the full Commission.” The administrative proceedings are separate from collateral proceedings pursued in federal court. Further details about…
A federal court in Ohio has dismissed the putative class action claims filed by a woman who alleged that Kroger Co. deceived the public by selling its beef as aged, when it was actually selling beef packaged and shipped almost immediately after slaughter. St. Clair v. Kroger Co., No. 7-03798 (N.D. Ohio, decided October 14, 2008). The case was originally filed in state court and removed on defendant’s motion under the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005 (CAFA). Because the plaintiff failed to allege that Kroger had prior notice that its conduct was “deceptive or unconscionable,” the court was compelled under Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practices Act (CSPA) to dismiss the class claims. Prior notice, under the law, must be “in the form of a rule adopted by the state Attorney General or a judicial decision made publicly available,” neither of which was referred to in the complaint So ruling, the…
The U.S. Supreme Court has reportedly asked the solicitor general to file a brief discussing the federal preemption issues in case filed against retailers for failing to inform California consumers that the farm-raised salmon they sold was artificially colored. Albertson’s, Inc. v. Kanter, No. 07-1327 (U.S.). FDA regulations allow salmon farmers to augment the normally grayish pigment of farm-raised fish with chemicals that turn the flesh pink like that of wild salmon. Federal law also requires that the use of coloring be indicated on product labels, but does not allow individuals to enforce the law through litigation. The plaintiffs filed several lawsuits in state court alleging that the grocery stores violated federal and state food and drug labeling laws by failing to provide this information to consumers. A trial court and intermediate appellate court found that federal law preempted the claims, but the California Supreme Court ruled in plaintiffs’ favor. Further…
