The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program (NOP) has issued draft guidance “to address the labeling, composition of and use of percentage statements in ‘made with organic (specified ingredients or food groups).’” Under NOP regulations, conventional non-organic ingredients produced without the use of genetically modified organisms, sewage sludge or ionizing radiations, as well as natural and synthetic substances exempted from the NOP’s prohibited ingredients list, may comprise up to 30 percent of a product labeled “made with organic (specified ingredients or food group(s)).” Such labeling may also display the percentage of organic ingredients in the product, but must be accompanied by the appropriate “made with organic” statement. According to NOP, acceptable variations of percentage claim statements include: (i) ‘‘X% Organic,’’ (ii) ‘‘X% Organic Ingredients,’’ (iii) ‘‘Contains X% Organic Ingredients,’’ and (iv) ‘‘Made with X% Organic Ingredients.” Other percentage claims “may be acceptable as long as they are not misleading,”…
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A Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine researcher has called for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to change its trans fat labeling guidelines to reflect more accurate levels of the fat in foods. Eric Brandt, “Deception of Trans Fats on Food and Drug Administration Food Labels: A Proposed Revision to the Presentation of Trans Fats on Food Labels,” American Journal of Health Promotion, January/February 2011. Current FDA regulations allow trans fat content of less than .5 grams to be listed as 0 grams of fat on food labels. Brandt claims that the policy is misleading and “may result in people thinking they are consuming foods with no trans fats, when in fact they may be consuming food that cumulatively include trans fats in excess of 1 percent of total dietary consumption.” He recommends that trans fat content be labeled in .1-gram increments.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a final rule requiring mandatory nutrition labeling on 40 major cuts of single-ingredient, raw meat and poultry products. The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 requires nutrition facts labels on most foods regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, but USDA-regulated meat and poultry has been exempt, allowing producers to supply the information on a voluntary basis. Effective January 1, 2012, the rule calls for packages of ground or chopped meat and poultry to feature nutrition fact panels on their labels, and whole, raw cuts of meat and poultry to either include facts panels on their package labels or have them available for consumers at the point-of-purchase. Designed to educate consumers about nutrition and diets, the rule requires the labels to supply the number of calories and the grams of total fat and saturated fat. “Additionally, any product that lists a…
Food & Water Watch (FWW) has published a report critical of seafood eco-labels that certify products as “environmentally friendly” or “sustainably produced.” Titled De-Coding Seafood Eco-Labels: Why We Need Public Standards, the report examines several seafood certification programs created “in response to a range of controversial issues related to the production and consumption of fish.” According to FWW, these privately operated programs have capitalized on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s failure to implement an “organic” seafood label. Moreover, FWW argues, “some of these certification programs have additional interests beyond providing consumer guidance. Whether it’s an interest in establishing a relationship with a fishery in order to work toward improvement, or getting more eco-certified product on the market, these other interests compete with label neutrality.” The FWW report finds that the six labeling programs under review “demonstrate inadequacies with regard to some or all of the following: environmental standards, social responsibility and…
A Florida resident has filed a putative class action against Tropicana Products,Inc. and a retailer, alleging that promotions for Trop50 Pomegranate Blueberry Juice Beverage® are deceptive because the product consists primarily of“a mixture of cheap apple juice and grape juice concentrates.” Cruz v. Tropicana Prods., Inc., No. 10-62926CA08 (Fla. Cir. Ct., Miami-Dade Cty., filed December 14, 2010).Seeking to certify a statewide class of consumers, the plaintiff claims that Tropicana hoped to tap into the “enormous new market”of those seeking to benefit from the antioxidants in blueberries and pomegranates by creating a “deceptive and misleading label with many elements not required by state or federal regulations.” The complaint refers to a September 2010 jury verdict in California finding that Welch Foods, Inc. marketed its 100% Welch’s White Grape Pomegranate® beverage deceptively with labeling that was “literally true” but “had a tendency to deceive a substantial number of consumers.” The complaint also notes…
In a ruling left unchallenged when the appeal period expired, a federal court in California has determined that a plaintiff bringing state law claims about alleged misleading food labels involving trans fat were preempted by federal law and that he lacked standing as a consumer to bring a claim under the Lanham Act, which protects competitors’ interests. Peviani v. Hostess Brands, Inc., No. 10-2302 (C.D. Cal., decided November 3, 2010). The plaintiff alleged on behalf of two nationwide classes that the marketing for six 100-calorie pack Hostess Brands products violated various California consumer-fraud laws because the company represented that the products contain “0 Grams of Trans Fat” when they actually contain partially hydrogenated oils, or artificial trans fat. According to the court, federal food-labeling laws allow the use of the phrase “0 Grams of Trans Fat” for those products containing less than 0.5 gram per serving and forbid states from…
Since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acted last month to nix alcoholic energy drinks, media focus has apparently shifted to the new campus craze, alcohol-infused whipped creams sold under the monikers CREAM and Whipped Lightning. The growing popularity of “whipahol®” has drawn scrutiny from both public health officials and campus administrators, who in some cases have warned parents about “creative combinations of alcohol” and raised questions about the sufficiency of package labeling. As one Boston Public Health Commission spokesperson told reporters, “If a product looks like something else, it’s easy not to be aware that it might contain a lot of alcohol.” See The Boston Herald, November 28, 2010; Boston NECN, November 29, 2010; University of Kansas Parent Association ENews, December 2010. According to various news sources, the 30-proof canisters are sold in liquor stores where they do not need to be refrigerated and have a shelf life approaching nine months. Moreover,…
A California resident has filed a putative class action against Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc., in federal court, alleging that the company has violated consumer protection laws in labeling and promoting its “Snapple® Acai Mixed Berry Red Tea Immunity” product because “no known clinical study . . . adequately supports Snapple’s claims.” Meaunrit v. Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, LLC, No. 10-5153 (N.D. Cal., filed November 12, 2010). Seeking to certify a class of all product purchasers, the named plaintiff alleges violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act, as well as breach of express warranty. She asks for restitution, disgorgement, damages, and attorney’s fees and costs in excess of $5 million. Plaintiff Julia Meaunrit and her counsel, Florida-licensed Howard Rubinstein, previously filed an unsuccessful class-action lawsuit in California against a food company alleging inadequate cooking instructions for its frozen pot pies. Details about that…
According to a news source, senators representing the Independent and Australian Greens parties have introduced legislation that would require food products to be labeled if they contain genetically modified (GM) material, regardless of amount or how it came to be incorporated in the product. The “Food Standards Amendment (Truth in Labelling—Genetically Modified Material) Bill 2010” would require Food Standards Australia New Zealand to develop labeling standards and establish due diligence guidelines for products claiming to be GM free. Debate on the proposal was adjourned. Senator Nick Xenophon (I) said on introducing the bill, “Not enough Australians seem to realize the implications that the rapid introduction of genetically modified materials may have on our health and potentially on our ability to produce safe foods and foods free from GM contamination. Truth in labeling is vital to enable Australian consumers to have an informed choice about the food they eat and the…
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has published several notices pertaining to the regulation of wine and spirits. Comments on all are requested by January 3, 2011. Responding to recent action taken by the Food and Drug Administration with respect to cochineal extract and carmine, which will have to be declared on food labels because of their potential for severe allergic reactions, TTB has proposed requiring the disclosure of these ingredients on wines, distilled spirits and malt beverages. Cochineal extract and carmine are derived from an insect native to subtropical South America and Mexico. According to TTB, its proposal “would allow consumers who are allergic to cochineal extract or carmine to identify and thus avoid alcohol beverage products that contain these color additives.” TTB has also proposed amending wine labeling regulations “to allow the labeling of imported wines with multistate appellations of origin.” According to the agency, this…
