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    • FDA Makes Publicly Available Data on Adverse Events Associated with Food and CosmeticsDecember 8th, 2016

      This week, FDA announced (here and here) that it is making available adverse event information for foods (including dietary supplements, food additives, and color additives) and cosmetics the Agency has received through its Center for Food Safety and Nutrition (CFSAN) Adverse Event Reporting System (CAERS). CAERS …

    • Will Any of FDA’s Recent Rules Wind Up On the Congressional Chopping Block?December 8th, 2016

      There has been a spate of recent news articles about the potential use of the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to overturn final rules issued toward the end of the Obama Administration. That prompted us to see which of FDA’s recently issued final rules might be …

    • FSIS Publishes Proposal to Amend Nutrition Labeling Regulations to Align with FDA’s Amended RegulationsDecember 5th, 2016

      On December 1, 2016, FSIS announced its proposal to amend the nutrition labeling regulations for meat and poultry.  The proposed regulations contain few surprises and appear to be identical to FDA’s regulations. In addition, FSIS proposes to remove minor existing differences, such as the option …

    • FDA Acts on Dietary Fiber: Issues Draft Guidance and Report of Evidence for Twenty Six Isolated and Synthetic Non-digestible FibersNovember 28th, 2016

      By Riëtte van Laack – As we previously reported, in May 2016, FDA published a final rule amending the nutrition labeling regulations. Among other things, FDA defined dietary fiber as non-digestible soluble and insoluble carbohydrates (with three or more monomeric units), and lignin that are intrinsic …

    • FSIS Announces That It Will Allow Use of Amended/New FDA Nutrition Facts Format for Meat and Poultry Product LabelsNovember 17th, 2016

      By Riëtte van Laack – As previously reported, on May 27, 2016, FDA published the final rules regarding nutrition labeling and serving sizes.  The amended regulations came into effect on July 26, 2016 and the compliance date is July 26, 2018 for all manufacturers, except for …

    • FDA Updates Its Food Facility Registration GuidanceNovember 10th, 2016

      By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA recently announced the issuance of the 7th edition of the Agency's Questions and Answers Regarding Food Facility Registration.  The latest edition includes nearly 60 new Q&As on a variety of registration-related topics, including: Biennial registration renewal – A facility’s registration must be renewed in …

    • Is it Time for a Single Food Agency?November 2nd, 2016

      That will be among several food policy topics discussed this Friday at a Food and Drug Law Journal Symposium titled Law and Food Systems: Institutional Pathways Toward a New Paradigm?  Proposals for a single food agency have bubbled up over the years, and the impending election …

    • Draft Guidance Addresses Suppliers’ Disclosure of Uncontrolled Hazards in Foods October 30th, 2016

      By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA issued a draft guidance document that addresses disclosures required to be provided by a supplier when certain hazards in food have not been controlled.  A disclosure requirement is included in four of the FSMA rules, namely the preventive controls rule for …

    • FSIS Issues Update to Guideline Regarding Animal-Raising ClaimsOctober 19th, 2016

      By Riëtte van Laack – A couple of weeks ago, the Food Safety Inspection Service of the USDA (FSIS) announced the availability of an updated compliance guideline regarding animal-raising claims. The previous guideline dated from 2002. Traditionally, the FSIS has interpreted the Federal Meat Inspection Act (“FMIA”) …

    • FDA to Revisit the Nutrient Content Claim “Healthy”October 3rd, 2016

      By Riëtte van Laack – On Sept. 27, 2016, FDA announced the availability of several documents regarding the “healthy” claim on foods. Under the current regulation, the term “healthy” (or similar terms) – when used with an explicit or implicit claim or statement about a nutrient in …

    • FDA’s First Substantiation Guidance for a Conventional FoodSeptember 19th, 2016

      By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA’s issuance of a draft guidance for industry titled Substantiation for Structure/Function Claims Made in Infant Formula Labels and Labeling marks the first issuance of a guidance that addresses structure/function (SF) claim substantiation for a conventional food.  As FDA explains in the guidance, …

    • FDA Tries New Approach to Removing Marketed Dietary Ingredients; Prepares About-Face on Dietary Ingredient Status of VinpocetineSeptember 7th, 2016

      By Wes Siegner – After 20 years of marketing vinpocetine, and accepting without objection the filing of 5 new dietary ingredient notifications (NDINs), FDA has “tentatively concluded” that vinpocetine is an illegal dietary ingredient for two reasons: 1) it does not fit within the statutory list …

    • ACI’s Food Law Regulation Boot CampSeptember 6th, 2016

      The American Conference Institute’s (“ACI’s”) Food Law Regulation Boot Camp is slated to take place at the InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile in Chicago, Illinois from November 15-16, 2016. The conference is billed as a way to “[c]onnect the dots of food regulatory law and gain …

    • Ready or Not, CRISPR and Gene Editing Have Arrived and Are Here to StaySeptember 5th, 2016

      Over the course of roughly the last year, gene editing has gone from being a topic limited to scientific conferences to being featured in the New York Times and on the cover of TIME magazine.  Most of the attention has been due to a molecular …

    • FDA Finalizes Regulations for Voluntary GRAS Notifications; Few SurprisesAugust 31st, 2016

      By Riëtte van Laack – On August 17, FDA published in the Federal Register the long awaited final rule, “Substances Generally Recognized as Safe.” The final rule is based on the proposed rule from 1997, and a reopening of the comment period with supplemental questions in …