Category: Issue 552
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NPR Explores “Non-GMO” Label
While laws mandating disclosure of the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on food labels are debated in statehouses, independent organizations such as the Non-GMO Project are offering certification for non-GMO products. NPR tracked how a food company earns the “Verified” label from the Non-GMO Project, beginning with an Iowa-based company called FoodChain ID that…
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RWJF Report Targets Food Marketing Directed to Children
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF) Healthy Eating Research initiative has published a January 2015 report seeking to close alleged loopholes in industry efforts to regulate the marketing of foods and beverages to children. Focusing on children younger than age 14, Recommendations for Responsible Food Marketing to Children notes that although new advertising standards have led…
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California Prosecutors Target Chocolate Bunnies for Deceptive Advertising
District attorneys in California’s Yolo, Sacramento and San Joaquin counties have reportedly filed a lawsuit in state court alleging that R.F. Palmer Co. advertised its “Too Tall Bunny” product in violation of the unfair business practices, false advertising and unfair competition provisions of the California Business and Professions Code. The chocolatier apparently packaged the chocolate…
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Heinz “Dip & Squeeze” Suit Headed to Trial
A Pennsylvania federal court has denied H.J. Heinz Co.’s motion for summary judgment in a lawsuit alleging that the company stole the idea for the “Dip & Squeeze” ketchup packet. Wawrzynski v. H.J. Heinz Co., No. 11-1098 (W.D. Penn., order entered January 7, 2015). The plaintiff asserts that he met with the company in 2008…
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Court Grants Conditional Class Certification in T.G.I. Friday’s Wage Action
A New York federal court has granted conditional class certification to plaintiffs employed by T.G.I. Friday’s who allege underpayment for side work and lack of payment for overtime work in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Flood v. Carlson Restaurants Inc., No. 14-2740 (S.D.N.Y., filed April 17, 2014). The restaurant employs as many…
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SCOTUS to Consider Whether Seizure of Raisins Is a Constitutional Taking
The U.S. Supreme Court has granted certiorari to a coalition of California raisin growers that challenged a federal rule requiring them to give a portion of their annual harvests to a crop-specific committee that in turn sells the reserves for export or donates them to school lunch programs or foreign governments. Horne v. USDA, No.…
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EFSA Says “No Consumer Health Risk” from BPA
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavorings and Processing Aids (CEF) has issued a scientific opinion finding that bisphenol A (BPA) poses “no health concern for any age group from dietary exposure or aggregated exposure.” Published January 21, 2015, the scientific opinion assessed exposure in three ways: (i) “external…
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More State Lawmakers Want to Prohibit Powdered Alcohol
State legislators in Wisconsin and Illinois have proposed bills that would ban the sale and distribution of powdered alcohol, which may enter the market in spring 2015 under the brand name Palcohol. Sen. Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee), who proposed the Wisconsin legislation, reportedly compared the product to the synthetic hallucinogenic drug known as “bath salts,” which…