The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) have established new dockets “to obtain comments, data and evidence relevant to the dietary intake of sodium as well as current and emerging approaches designed to promote sodium reduction.” FDA and FSIS have warned that current sodium consumption “is substantially higher than what has been recommended by scientific and public health agencies and organizations,” including the Institute of Medicine and the USDA in its 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. According to the September 15, 2011, Federal Register notice, “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported in 2010 that over 80 percent of adults (>=20 years) recommended to consume less than 2,300 mg/d [milligrams per diem] of sodium in fact consumed more than 2,300 mg/d.” The new dockets invite stakeholders and other interested persons to provide information about (i) “current and…
Tag Archives salt/sodium
The Campbell Soup Co. will change its low-sodium tomato soup labels under a settlement with a class of consumers who sued the company in a New Jersey federal court in 2010, alleging that these products cost more while actually containing about the same level of sodium as the company’s regular tomato soup. Smajlaj v. Campbell Soup Co., No. 10-01332 (D.N.J., preliminary approval granted August 9, 2011). The company will also provide a cash fund of $1.05 million for consumers throughout the United States who purchased the products over a two-year period ending in August 2011. Maximum recovery, depending on which soup was purchased and whether receipts are available, is $10 or $.50 for each can that a class member can show she purchased. The agreement would permit class counsel fees of $350,000; the court has scheduled a final settlement approval hearing for November 29. According to court documents, Campbell will…
A woman who claims she consumed Ramona’s burritos believing they were low in calories and sodium, has filed a putative class action alleging that the company mislabeled its products and that the burritos were much higher in calories and sodium than individual labels in and before 2006 and bulk labels indicated. Solomon v. Ramona’s Mex. Food Prods., Inc., No. BC463914 (Cal. Super. Ct., Los Angeles Cty., filed June 17, 2011). Concerns about obesity and an inner ear disorder exacerbated by high sodium intake allegedly led the plaintiff to purchase and consume one to two burritos daily beginning in 2006. At that time, single and multiple packages purportedly indicated that each burrito contained 170 calories and 270 mg sodium. Individual burritos were allegedly re-labeled in 2010 to 340 calories and 580 mg sodium, while the bulk packaging continued to carry the lower values. According to the complaint, “Plaintiff is informed and believes…
A recent study examining national salt-reduction strategies around the world has concluded that such programs are “likely to be one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways of improving public health.” Jacqueline Webster, et al., “Salt Reduction Initiatives Around the World,” Journal of Hypertension, June 2011. The study used existing reviews, literature and relevant websites to identify 32 national salt-reduction initiatives, finding that “the majority of the activity was in Europe.” Twenty-six of the 32 strategies “were led by government, five by nongovernment, and one by industry,” and some were “multifaceted including food reformulation, consumer awareness initiatives and labeling actions.” Of the countries identified as having a salt-reduction strategy, (i) 27 “had maximum population salt intake targets, ranging from 5 to 8 g/person per day,” (ii) 28 “had some baseline data on salt consumption and 18 had data on sodium levels in foods,” (iii) 28 “were working with the food…
A European study has reportedly raised questions about the impact of low-sodium diets on heart health, finding that people who apparently consumed the least amount of salt did not lower their risk for high blood pressure and, contrary to expectations, increased their risk of death from cardiovascular disease (CVD). Katarzyna Stolarz-Skrzypek, et al., “Fatal and Nonfatal Outcomes, Incidence of Hypertension, and Blood Pressure Changes in Relation to Urinary Sodium Excretion,” Journal of the American Medical Association, May 4, 2011. Researchers based their results on 24-hour sodium excretion measurements taken over a median 7.9 years from 3,700 subjects “randomly enrolled in the Flemish Study on Genes, Environment, and Health Outcomes (1985-2004) or in the European Project on Genes in Hypertension (1999-2001).” The findings from this cohort evidently indicated that while higher sodium excretion aligned with an increase in systolic blood pressure, “this association did not translate into a higher risk of…
A federal court in New Jersey has granted in part the motion to dismiss filed by the Campbell Soup Co. in litigation alleging that consumers were misled by the company’s lower-sodium labels, believing they were a healthier alternative to regular soups, which allegedly contain about the same levels of sodium as the more expensive low-sodium versions. Smajlaj v. Campbell Soup Co., No. 10-1332 (D.N.J., decided March 23, 2011). The plaintiffs seek to represent a nationwide class of consumers, and named plaintiff Rosa Smajlaj has voluntarily dismissed her claims, so the suit will proceed with four other New Jersey residents as named plaintiffs. The defendant sought to dismiss the claims under the plausibility pleading standard established in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (2007), and Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. 1937 (2009), and on the basis of federal preemption. The court determined that the claims of misleading labels were not…
Walmart has unveiled a plan to provide healthier food choices at reduced prices, setting specific targets for lowering sodium, trans fats and added sugars in thousands of packaged foods by 2015. Joined by first lady Michelle Obama at an event in Washington, D.C., the major grocer outlined key elements of the initiative that built on her “Let’s Move” campaign to make healthy choices more convenient and affordable. The initiative includes (i) reducing sodium by 25 percent in grain products, luncheon meats, salad dressings, and frozen entrees; (ii) reducing added sugars by 10 percent in dairy items, sauces and fruit drinks; (iii) removing “all remaining industrially produced trans fats” in packaged foods; (iv) making healthier choices more affordable through a “variety of sourcing, pricing and transportation and logistics initiatives”; (v) developing “strong criteria for a simple front-of-package seal” to identify “truly healthier food options”; (vi) “providing solutions to address food deserts…
The American Heart Association (AHA) is urging the food industry, health professionals, government, and the public to “intensify efforts to reduce the amount of sodium (salt) Americans consume.” Published as a presidential advisory in an upcoming issue of its journal Circulation, AHA says its science-based recommendations advocate no more than 1,500 mg of sodium daily for the general public. The group claims that current sodium intake is more than two times higher, with 77 percent coming from packaged, processed and restaurant foods. “Even a modest decline in intake—say 400 mg per day—would produce benefits that are substantial and warrant implementation,” according to the advisory, which warns that increased sodium consumption can lead to high blood pressure and heart, kidney and blood vessel problems. With its 2020 impact goal aimed at reducing deaths from cardiovascular disease and stroke by 20 percent, the advisory stressed that “the potential health benefits of sodium…
A New Jersey appellate court has dismissed the second amended complaint in a putative class action filed by a man who claims that Denny’s meals contain excessive undisclosed levels of sodium in violation of the state’s Consumer Fraud Act. DeBenedetto v. Denny’s, Inc., No. A-4135-09T1 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div., decided January 11, 2011). The plaintiff was represented by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Additional information about the litigation appears in Issue 312 of this Update. The court agreed with the trial judge that the plaintiff’s complaint was, in essence, a product liability claim for failure to warn for which the state’s product liability law provided “a sole and exclusive remedy.” In the absence of proof of injury, the courts determined that the plaintiff failed to state a claim on which relief can be granted. The appellate court disagreed with the plaintiff that recent state supreme court…
Mandatory sodium limits for processed foods could be 20 times more effective than voluntary reduction measures. Linda Cobiac, et al., “Cost-effectiveness of interventions to reduce dietary salt intake,” Heart, November 2010. Australian researchers evaluated the public health benefits and cost-effectiveness of four possible strategies for reducing dietary salt: (i) the current Australian program that provides incentives for food manufacturers to voluntarily reduce sodium in their processed foods, (ii) a government mandate to moderate salt in processed foods, (iii) dietary advice for people at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and (iv) dietary advice for anyone at high risk. Writing that “dietary advice targeting individuals is not cost-effective,” the study’s authors concluded that programs which “encourage the food industry to reduce salt in processed foods are highly recommended for improving population health and reducing health sector spending in the long term.” They suggested, however, that “regulatory action from government may be needed…
