AUGUST
2004
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...INTOUCH... Volume 5/Number 8 -
August, 6, 2004
Monthly Updates on Government Action Affecting Food
Labels
Brought to you by: Food Consulting Company
Your source for food label help at
www.foodlabels.com
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Welcome to August INTOUCH. INTOUCH helps readers
stay aware of changes and additions to U.S. food
labeling
laws. Access Food Consulting Company help for
preparing
regulation-compliant food labels at
www.foodlabels.com.
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Call for Testimonials on Food Labels Help
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Food Consulting Company is seeking testimonials from
the
company's food labeling clients. Specifically, the
company
is requesting comments about:
-- overall quality of service
-- accuracy of technical components
-- ease of working with the company
-- on-time delivery
Food Consulting Company will launch a new look for
www.foodlabels.com in
September 2004, and the testi-
monials submitted will be available for prospective
clients at the site.
Testimonials can be submitted to
mailto:kudos@foodlabels.com
Food Consulting Company is committed to 100% client
satisfaction.
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President Signs Allergen Food Labels Bill
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On August 2, 2004, S. 741, a bill that includes the
Food
Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004,
was signed into law by President Bush. This bill
defines
"major food allergen" as milk, eggs, fish, shellfish,
tree nuts,
wheat, peanuts, and soybeans. Among other things, the
bill
requires that:
-- foods containing or derived from a "major food
allergen"
be labeled to indicate the presence of the food
allergen,
including those found in flavorings, colorings, or
incidental
additives
-- "major food allergens" be listed by the common or
usual name
-- the Secretary define and permit the use of the term
"gluten-free" on food labels
For additional requirements of the bill, go to
http://thomas.loc.gov and
search on Bill Number "S.741.ENR",
then scroll to "TITLE II - FOOD ALLERGEN LABELING AND
CONSUMER PROTECTION".
See related FDA press release at
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2004/NEW01094.html
...INTOUCH... Comments:
Industry has been expecting mandatory allergen
labeling for
some time and voluntary labeling is already widely
underway.
Food Consulting Company will continue to assure
allergens
are listed according to federal regulations.
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FDA Committed to Fight Obesity With Revised Food
Labels
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In an address to the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT)
on
July 13, 2004, Lester Crawford, Acting FDA
Commissioner,
discussed the shortcomings of the current food label
in com-
bating obesity. Crawford emphasized that FDA is
committed
to help reverse the obesity trend through significant
label
revision. As background for this commitment, he
referred to
the Obesity Working Group final report that was
published in
March 2004.
Read Crawford's address at
http://www.fda.gov/oc/speeches/2004/ift0713.html
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FYI: A Summary of Qualified Health Claims permitted
by
FDA to date is available at
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/qhc-sum.html
Petitions to receive FDA approval for new Qualified
Health
Claims can be submitted to
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/lab-esub.html
© Food Consulting Company, 2004. |