Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Category: Issue 413

  • European Commission Faces Backlash over Proposed CAP Reforms

    The European Commission (EC) recently released 12 legal proposals designed to update the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) by 2013, a move which has apparently elicited a strong response from environmentalists over reforms meant to “strengthen the competitiveness and the sustainability of agriculture” throughout the region. According to the EC, the proposals would simplify CAP while…

  • FDA Submits Plan to Study Risk Perceptions of Food Recalls

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has submitted a proposed information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to conduct an experimental study designed to evaluate the public’s risk perceptions after a foodborne-illness-related recall. Produce growers, food retailers and consumers will be asked to participate in the study “to help FDA better understand…

  • U.S. Agencies Convene Public Meeting to Target Ways of Reducing Sodium Consumption

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), Agricultural Research Service, and Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion have announced a public meeting to discuss approaches to reduce sodium consumption. The November 10, 2011, public meeting in Silver Spring, Maryland, will provide a forum for…

  • FDA Declares Preemption Language in Regulation Preambles Not Legally Supportable

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has determined that text included in the preambles to three regulations adopted over the past 10 years and purporting to preempt state law “are not legally justified.” The agency reviewed all of its regulations in response to President Barack Obama’s (D) May 20, 2009, memorandum outlining the administration’s preemption…

  • Chemical Industry Seeks BPA Ban, FDA Inclined to Adopt One

    According to a news source, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is poised to prohibit the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and sippy cups in response to a petition filed by the American Chemistry Council. A council spokesperson apparently stated during an October 7, 2011, press briefing that while scientific data and…

  • Agency Reps Reveal Watered-Down Youth Marketing Principles in Committee Testimony

    The House Energy & Commerce Committee held a hearing on October 12, 2011, to consider “Food Marketing: Can ‘Voluntary’ Government Restrictions Improve Children’s Health?” Speaking for the committee, Chair Fred Upton (R-Mich.) concluded that an interagency working group tasked with developing standards for marketing food to children and teenagers had taken what appeared to be “a…

  • Lawmakers Introduce Bill Addressing Nanotech Product Risks

    U.S. Senators Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) and Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.) have introduced a bill (S. 1662) that focuses on the potential risks of products containing nanomaterials. The Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Act of 2011 would establish a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) program to conduct the scientific research needed to evaluate the health and safety of common…