As the pandemic nears the one-year mark, food and beverage companies face increased pressure to maintain new consumers gained during the pandemic while also engaging additional shoppers over record household penetration increases in the last year – a...
In the wake of the recent congressional report into heavy metals in baby food, the FDA says its goal is to reduce exposure to toxic elements in foods through research and collaboration, but has not said if it plans to issue guidance on upper limits for...
Whether or not you believe in climate change or the food industry’s contribution to the greenhouse gasses wrapping the earth and changing weather patterns, plenty of consumers do, and they increasingly are buying products based on their environmental...
Updated: CRN urges public health establishments to issue guidance on vitamin D supplement benefits
US Representative Glenn Grothman (R-WI) has introduced a House Resolution to recognize the significant role vitamin D may play in the fight against COVID-19.
The ABV threshold at which kombucha switches from a non-alcoholic beverage to what is effectively 'beer' for tax purposes is currently set at 0.5%. The KOMBUCHA Act, set to be reintroduced to Congress this session, provided the right tax vehicle...
New York Attorney General Letitia James has urged the FDA to follow recommendations in a recent congressional subcommittee report and set limits for toxic metals across all baby foods.
As predicted, several baby food brands have been hit with class action lawsuits alleging false advertising and violations of state consumer protection laws, following the publication of a congressional committee report raising alarm bells about heavy...
Baby food brands have defended their procurement and testing protocols after a congressional report highlighted the presence of heavy metals in their wares. The report – which will likely prompt lawsuits, predict attorneys - underlines the need for the...
New research revealing the depth of consumer confusion about allergen labeling underscores a need for clearer, more consistent labeling about the presence of allergens or the risk of cross-contamination in food and beverages, and bolsters support for...
The Hemp and Hemp-Derived CBD Consumer Protection and Market Stabilization Act has been re-introduced in the US House of Representatives with the aim of making hemp and hemp-derived CBD a dietary ingredient in dietary supplements.
Kroger’s decision this week to shutter two Southern California grocery stores in response to a local ordinance mandating a temporary hazard pay increase for some grocery employees during the pandemic could portend similar action by other retailers in...
Plant-based brands have blasted the latest wave of bills proposing restrictions on the use of terms such as ‘milk’ and ‘meat’ in states including New York and Texas as “a solution in search of a problem,” but say more work is needed to persuade legislators...
In the next 12 to 18 months, cultivated meat could become available to the masses, according to some industry players raising funds to scale production of technological and scientific advances that will allow for lower production costs and a lower consumer...
The rate at which warning letters are being issued for illegal COVID-19 claims has slowed dramatically since FDA and FTC began cooperating on the enforcement action in March of 2020.
The White House Office of Management and Budget pulled six FDA guidances and rules from its review, including the proposal "Cannabidiol Enforcement Policy; Draft Guidance for Industry" — handing the CBD industry yet another setback.
What do reasonable consumers think ‘no antibiotics’ on a cheese label means? That the cheese contains no antibiotics? That the milk is from cows that have never been administered antibiotics? Or something else?
President Joe Biden today is expected to take aim at the rising rate of food insecurity in the US during the ongoing pandemic by signing an executive order that will increase federal food assistance, including for those who currently receive the maximum...
The School Nutrition Association wants to permanently extend the US Department of Agriculture’s decision late last fall to offer all public-school students free breakfast and lunch through the end of the 2020-21 academic year “as an integral part of the...
Does ‘sorta sweet’ imply that a product is low in sugar? Or does it simply mean that it tastes ‘kind of sweet’ (as the maker of StraightUp Tea asserts in a bid to fend off a false advertising lawsuit)?
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons announced his resignation yesterday, which begins the process of filling slots at the commission with Biden Administration appointees. A reformed FTC is likely to take a stronger line on consumer protection,...
Cell-based seafood startup BlueNalu – which is building a pilot plant, demo kitchen and new HQ at a 40,000 sq ft facility in San Diego – hopes to get its first product (mahi mahi) into a small number of US restaurants by the end of the year, assuming...
Ajinomoto has defended the safety of flavor enhancer MSG against claims made in a citizen's petition filed by the nonprofit Truth in Labeling Campaign that urges the FDA to rescind the ingredient's GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) status.
Most grocery retailers are strongly encouraging employees to vaccinate against the coronavirus as more states expand access to the vaccine to frontline essential workers, but few are mandating it and even fewer are paying their employees to take the preventive...
The European Food Safety Authority has published its first scientific opinion on an insect-derived food. The conclusion? Mealworms are safe for human consumption.
By Robert Guite and Abby Meyer, Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP
If your company sells any vanilla-flavored food or beverage product, then you are probably aware of the innumerable class action cases that have been filed over the last 18 months attacking these products – 67 cases by our count. Here, we trace the history...
For many Americans in 2020, pouring a stiff drink at the end of the day – or in the middle of it – was less about socializing with friends and more about coping with the chaos of the pandemic, and while many of the challenges from last year remain – research...
For food & supplement brands hoping 2021 might be the year the FDA unveils a long-awaited regulatory framework for CBD, its Jan 7 progress report citing the need for more safety data does not provide much encouragement, with the Council for Responsible...
Federal regulators could do more to protect consumers by using existing import authorities as well as moving forward on hemp/CBD regulation, the National Products Association has said.
Supplement manufacturer Zarbee’s Naturals has been advised to qualify some of its claims in a National Advertising Division case that bears on the question of what is meant by the term ‘natural.’
Purveyors of acacia gum have submitted a new petition to the FDA with additional scientific data to support their contention that it should be classified as a dietary fiber on food labels, highlighting its positive impact on glucose and insulin levels...
Between the pandemic, wildfires, economic losses and a contentious presidential election, 2020 was a year for the books – and as tempting as it may be to turn the page with the new year and not look back, one marketing expert and applied anthropologist...
More good news for the CBD industry. The European Commission has abandoned its plans to classify non-synthetic CBD a narcotic and resumed Novel Food applications for edible CBD products.
Frontline food industry workers will be among the first to be vaccinated after health care workers and those in long-term care facilities, according to federal guidance approved by the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization...
Will 2021 be the year the FDA finally weighs in on CBD regulations? Will the industry be hit with a wave of liability lawsuits over COVID-19? Will we see a framework for the regulation of cell-cultured meat? FoodNavigator-USA quizzed leading food law...
Four years after receiving a petition urging it to permit a more consumer-friendly name, the FDA has issued final guidance allowing companies to use ‘potassium salt’ as alternate name for ‘potassium chloride’ on ingredient labels.
The Federal Trade Commission unveiled an enforcement action today against six sellers of CBD products that it alleges have been making unsubstantiated disease treatment claims. FTC has levied more than $246,000 in fines in the cases.
The USDA is proposing to update rules allowing firms using celery salt or other natural sources of nitrates or nitrites, to make the claims ‘No Nitrate or Nitrite Added’ on labels (something they're not allowed to do if they use synthetic nitrites/nitrates)...
Displaying health warnings on sugar-sweetened drinks could be an effective way of reducing consumption, suggest US researchers, who found a 14.5% decline in consumption among students when warning labels were displayed on drinks in a college cafeteria....
While the terms 'plant-based' and 'vegan' might appear to be interchangeable (they both exclude animal products), consumers do not view them in quite the same way, claims Foodchain ID, which has just launched separate 'vegan,'...
Even as the animal protein sector nears $3 trillion dollars, it is falling short of demand while simultaneously straining limited resources – a problem that will compound in the next 20 years as the global wealth and the population grows, according to...
Europe’s CBD market is optimistic a ruling from the EU’s highest court not to classify the ingredient a narcotic – going against the European Commission’s shock preliminary view in July – will pave the way for Novel Food applications for CBD products...
Children’s dietary patterns are mostly set by the time they turn 2 years old, which doesn’t leave a lot of wiggle room for indulging picky eaters if caregivers want their kids to grow up eating – and liking – a wide variety of healthy, nutrient-dense...
The FDA has issued draft guidance encouraging food manufacturers to voluntarily declare all uses of sesame in the ingredient list on food labels, notably in flavors and spices, but says it needs more data to assess whether it should be subject to mandatory...
Joe Biden’s presidential victory projected this weekend could open the door for the CPG industry to play a more dynamic role in America’s economic revival, including shaping new consumer protections and food safety measures, as well as pursue a more industry-friendly...
In a world where raging wildfires, battering hurricanes and unexpected derechos dominate the headlines, sustainability is becoming a top concern for consumers – and one that the independent research company HowGood can help food and beverage brands meet...
Stevia specialist SweeGen has started commercial production of Reb I, a lesser-known steviol glycoside “with its own unique and distinct taste” that works well in a wide range of food and beverage applications.
Proposed rules regulating the sale of ingestible products containing hemp-derived cannabinoids in New York have been hailed as “pragmatic” and “rational” by brands attempting to navigate the regulatory minefield in the absence of federal regulations.
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