Category: Issue 364
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Scientists Learn More About Foods’ Effect on Brain, Activists Call for Government Action
Writing in the New Scientist, a Washington, D.C.-based journalist recently discussed the latest research on the effect of “junk food,” or foods high in sugar, fat and salt, on animal and human brains and behavior. Bijal Trivedi reports, “Some say there is now enough data to warrant government regulation of the fast food industry and…
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Rudd Center Issues Policy Guide on Obesity
The Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity has released a fall 2010 paper highlighting obesity prevention policies with “the potential for the greatest impact.” The center’s recommendations relate to preschools and schools, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, marketing to children, weight bias, food deserts, and ongoing surveillance of these efforts. Among other guidelines, the…
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White Paper Addresses Animal Disease Traceability Debate
The National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA) and the U.S. Animal Health Association (USAHA) have prepared a white paper based on the Joint Strategy Forum on Animal Disease Traceability held August 30-31, 2010, in Denver, Colorado. Responding to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) “new, flexible framework for animal disease traceability,” the forum reportedly included…
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UCS Survey Claims Special Interests, Public Officials Interfere with Food Safety
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has released a report, “Driving the Fox from the Henhouse: Improving Oversight of Food Safety at the FDA and USDA,” that provides the results of a March 2010 survey of 8,000 food safety agency employees. Conducted at Iowa State University’s Center for Survey Statistics, the questionnaire solicited responses from…
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Class Action Filed Against Egg Producers in Salmonella Outbreak
A putative class action has apparently been filed in a federal court in Illinois by six named plaintiffs who allegedly became ill after consuming Salmonella-tainted eggs from Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms in Iowa. The plaintiffs’ attorney has reportedly been given permission to inspect the farms for evidence. According to a news source, the plaintiffs allege…
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Juice Maker Charges FTC with Exceeding Authority in Regulating Health Claims
POM Wonderful LLC has filed a complaint for declaratory relief in a D.C. federal court against the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), alleging that it (i) exceeded its authority in requiring Food and Drug Administration (FDA) preapproval of health-related claims on food products, that is, those claims stating that a product treats, mitigates or prevents disease, and…
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Consumer Fraud Claims Against Manufacturers of Foods with Fiber Dismissed as Preempted
A federal court in Illinois has dismissed claims that companies failing to disclose that the fiber in their snack-bar and yogurt products is “non-natural” chicory root-based inulin, which allegedly lacks the same health benefits as “natural” fiber, have violated state consumer fraud laws. Turek v. General Mills, Inc., No. 09-7038 (N.D. Ill., decided September 1,…
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Eighth Circuit Allows Parts of MDL Lawsuits Against Aurora Dairy to Proceed
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the dismissal of one defendant and several claims in multidistrict litigation (MDL) alleging that a dairy certified as organic and the retailers selling its milk violated state deceptive trade practices laws because the dairy did not comply with national organic program standards. In re: Aurora Dairy Corp.…