Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Category: Department of Agriculture

  • APHIS to Again Publicize Animal Welfare Violations

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced plans to publicize enforcement actions taken in response to violations of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). Starting in June 2010, APHIS will issue monthly press releases that disclose (i) people and businesses charged with AWA violations, and (ii) information about closed…

  • Animal Disease Traceability Topic of APHIS Meetings

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced three public meetings for stakeholders to offer input on a new framework for animal disease traceability. Specific details for a proposed animal disease traceability rule will be discussed on May 11, 2010, in Kansas City, Missouri, May 13 in Riverdale, Maryland,…

  • U.S. Supreme Court Considers GE Alfalfa Dispute

    Oral argument in litigation over whether the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) properly deregulated a genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa seed took place before the U.S. Supreme Court on April 27, 2010. Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms, No. 09-475 (U.S.). The Ninth Circuit imposed a ban on use of the GE seed until the USDA…

  • FSIS Food Safety Regulatory Initiatives Lag in Absence of Agency Head

    Without a Senate-confirmed leader for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), target dates for ongoing rulemakings have apparently slipped in recent months. In January 2010, President Barack Obama (D) nominated Elisabeth Hagen to serve as USDA’s Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety, but the Senate has failed to…

  • USDA Organics Program Changes Course on DHA and ARA in Infant Formula

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) National Organic Program (NOP) has announced that its 2006 decision approving the fortification of organic infant formula and organic milk products with synthetic omega-3 fatty acid DHASCO (DHA) and omega-6 fatty acid ARASCO (ARA) resulted from an incorrect interpretation of nutritional guidelines and NOP board recommendations. Thus, DHA and…

  • Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Plans Final Meeting

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have announced the sixth and final meeting of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, which is soliciting public comment on its draft report titled “Dietary Guidelines for Americans.” USDA and HHS publish the report at least every five years “after a thorough…

  • Organics Watchdog Calls on USDA, FTC to Stop Use of “Organic” in Company Names

    The Cornucopia Institute has called for action by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to stop what it alleges is the misleading practice of companies using the word “organic” in their names while selling foods not certified organic. In its April 22, 2010, letter to the USDA’s deputy administrator,…

  • Consumer & Organic Interests Challenge U.S. Draft Position on Codex Labeling for GM Products

    A coalition of groups representing farmers, public health, environmental, and organic food interests has submitted a comment to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) seeking changes to the draft position on labeling genetically modified (GM) products that the U.S. Codex delegate plans to bring to the May 3-7, 2010,…