Category: Issue
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FDA Issues Guidance on Allulose, Seeks Comments on Non-Traditional Sugars
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued final guidance on the declaration of allulose in food. “The guidance describes FDA’s views on the declaration of allulose on Nutrition Facts and Supplement Facts labels and the caloric content of allulose,” according to the announcement. “The guidance also announces our intent to exercise enforcement discretion…
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Meat, Cultured Meat Groups Jointly Send USDA Letter
The National American Meat Institute and the Alliance for Meat, Poultry and Seafood Innovation have urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to seek more information on cultured or cell-based meat and poultry products. The organizations recommend that USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service issue an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to obtain information about…
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“Veggie Burgers” Approved But “Vegan Cheese” Banned in EU
The European Parliament has reportedly voted against a ban on the use of meat terms for plant-based alternatives to meat, allowing words such as “burger,” “steak” and “sausage” to be used on the packaging for plant-based foods, while passing a measure to ban the use of dairy terms on alternatives to dairy foods, such as…
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FDA Announces Voluntary Pilot Program for FSMA Rules
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a voluntary pilot program that will assess third-party food safety audit standards for the Preventive Controls for Human Food and Produce Safety requirements set forth under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The agency also released a guidance document with further information about the program. “We…
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Court Dismisses Mott’s “Natural” Juice Lawsuit
A California federal court has dismissed a putative class action alleging that Mott’s apple juices and applesauce are not “natural” as marketed because they contain trace amounts of pesticides. Yu v. Dr Pepper Snapple Grp. Inc., No. 18-6664 (N.D. Cal, entered October 6, 2020). The complaint was previously dismissed without prejudice, and the amended version…
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Sugar Content of “Lightly Sweetened” Tea Challenged
A group of consumers has filed a putative class action alleging the Healthy Beverage Co. LLC misleadingly labels its products as “lightly sweetened” because the product contains 20 grams of added sugar, or 40% of the recommended daily intake. Pierre v. Healthy Beverage Co. LLC, NO. 20-4934 (E.D. Penn., filed October 6, 2020). The complaint…
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Irish Court Classifies Subway Bread as Confectionery Item
The Supreme Court of Ireland has held that Subway’s breads are subject to value-added tax (VAT) because they contain too much sugar to be considered a staple product. Under the country’s VAT law, bread can contain up to 2% sugar in the flour to be classified as a staple product exempt from the tax; Subway’s…
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Malic Acid Suit Filed Against True Lemon
Grand Brands Inc. allegedly markets its True Lemon powdered drink mixes as “naturally flavored” despite containing malic acid, a plaintiff alleges. Tedesco v. Grand Brands Inc., No. 20-1928 (S.D. Cal., filed September 28, 2020). The complaint asserts that Grand Brands fails to identify the type of malic acid included in its products and alleges that…