Category: Issue 508
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Tort Reform Group Highlights “Big Food” Cases in “Judicial Hellholes” Report
The American Tort Reform Foundation has published the 2013-2014 issue of its “Judicial Hellholes” report, placing California, in part for the many lawsuits against food and beverage companies filed there, at the top of the list of jurisdictions with “plaintiff-friendly consumer protection laws” and courts purportedly receptive to such lawsuits. According to the report, plaintiffs’…
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Advocacy Groups File Amicus Brief to Support Challenge to Utah “Ag-Gag” Law
Advocacy organizations including the Center for Food Safety and Food & Water Watch have filed an amicus brief to support an animal rights organization coalition’s challenge to a Utah law that criminalizes undercover investigations of meat and poultry processing facilities. Animal Legal Def. Fund v. Herbert, No. 13-0679 (D. Utah, brief filed December 17, 2013). Contending that…
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Monster Beverage’s Challenge to S.F. Attorney Investigation Dismissed
A federal court in California has dismissed, without prejudice, the action for declaratory and injunctive relief brought against the San Francisco city attorney, seeking to halt his investigation of Monster Beverage’s energy drinks and efforts to regulate their formulation, labeling and promotion. Monster Beverage Corp. v. Herrera, No. 13-0786 (C.D. Cal., decided December 16, 2013).…
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Seventh Circuit Says No Duty to Defend Four Loko® Maker
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that Phusion Projects’ commercial liability insurance carriers have no duty to defend the company in actions alleging that intoxication attributable to consumption of its Four Loko® alcoholic product caused death and personal injury. Netherlands Ins. Co. v. Phusion Projects, Inc., No. 12-1355 (7th Cir., decided December 16,…
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Outgoing NYC Mayor Secures Passage of Foam Food-Packaging Law
The New York City (NYC) Council has reportedly adopted legislation that would prohibit the use of foam food containers by 2015, if city sanitation officials determine that recycling the substance is not feasible. Favored by outgoing Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the legislation referred to as the Styrofoam ban—would include a six-month grace period, during which only…
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OEHHA Adds Plasticizer to Prop. 65 List
California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has added diisononyl phthalate—a plasticizer used in food contact materials—to the list of chemicals known to the state to cause cancer. OEHHA’s Carcinogen Identification Committee determined that “the chemical was clearly shown, through scientifically valid testing according to generally accepted principles, to cause cancer.” The addition,…
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China to Establish Food and Safety ‘Blacklist’
The Chinese Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) has announced a public consultation on a draft regulation, “Provisions on the Administration of the ‘Black List’ System for Food and Drug Safety,” that would give regulators the authority to blacklist companies that violate food safety laws. The regulation would allow information on manufacturers that violate laws and…
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EC Publishes List of Authorized Smoke Flavorings
The European Commission (EC) has published legislation listing the 10 smoke flavoring primary products authorized for use in food. According to Smoke Flavoring Regulation EC No. 2065/2003, these primary products include smoke condensates and tar fractions that can be used directly on foods such as meat and fish to impart a smoky flavor or in…