By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA announced that it executed a Food Safety Systems Recognition Arrangement ("RA") with its counterpart in New Zealand, the Ministry for Primary Indsutries ("PMI"). The RA is the culmination of an assessment that began in 2010 and included both paper and on-site …
By Ricardo Carvajal – We previously reported on a lawsuit that seeks to compel OMB and FDA to accelerate the implementation of FSMA. Now the government has filed a motion to dismiss the case and for summary judgment. The motion provides a full accounting of …
By Ricardo Carvajal & John R. Fleder – On November 26th, Commissioner Hamburg issued an order suspending the registration of the Sunland Inc. food manufacturing facility alleged to be at the heart of the ongoing recall of peanut products potentially contaminated with Salmonella. Until the order …
By Riëtte van Laack – In April 2012, a California consumer filed a class action lawsuit against The Hershey Company alleging that Defendant’s Special Dark Chocolate Bars, Special Dark Kisses, Special Dark Cocoa and Cocoa were misbranded because they carried impermissible nutrient content claims, including nutrient …
By Ricardo Carvajal – The Center for Science in the Public Interest (“CSPI”) is taking on caffeination and fortification of foods with renewed vigor. In a letter to FDA/CFSAN’s Office of Compliance, CSPI alleges that certain foods to which caffeine is added “appear to violate [FDA’s] …
By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA published a draft Compliance Policy Guide ("CPG") that sets out enforcement criteria for ackee fruit products that contain hypoglycin A, a toxin that is naturally present in the fruit. Adverse effects of consuming the toxin can range from none to vomiting, …
By Ricardo Carvajal – The Government Accountability Office ("GAO") published a report that examines FDA’s progress in implementing provisions of the Food Safety Modernization Act ("FSMA") that direct the agency to establish a third-party certification system for imported foods. Among other things, that system is a …
By Ricardo Carvajal – As the November 6 election draws near, debate over California’s Proposition 37 is heating up. If the measure passes, genetically engineered ("GE") foods sold at retail in the state would have to be labeled as such – a requirement that would have …
The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (“USP”) recently announced at an Awards and Recognition Program for USP Expert Volunteers that the 2012 USP Award for an Innovative Response to Public Health Challenges went to the Food Ingredients Expert Committee. Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C. Director Diane B. …
By Ricardo Carvajal & Wes Siegner – The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General released two reports (see here and here) critical of dietary supplements in the weight loss and immune support categories. OIG focused on those categories because they were reported …
By Ricardo Carvajal – A federal district court dismissed a class action that took issue with a number of allegedly false and misleading claims made on the label of Benecol, a butter/margarine alternative. The claims at issue include “each serving contains .85g of plant stanol …
By Ricardo Carvajal – A federal court has ruled that the express preemption provisions added to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (“the Act”) by the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (“NLEA”) do not preempt Florida’s standard of identity for honey. Plaintiffs in the case, …
By Riëtte van Laack – Earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced the settlement of a $3.7 million civil penalty case against Jason Pharmaceuticals (“Jason”), a subsidiary of Medifast Inc., for allegedly violating a 1992 FTC Order regarding weight loss claims. According to the …
By Ricardo Carvajal – A consumer group, Citizens for Health, submitted a citizen petition (Docket No. FDA-2012-P-0904) to FDA asking the agency to “take action to protect the public from the illegal, mislabeled use of high fructose corn syrup (‘HFCS’) that is above 55 percent fructose” and …
By Ricardo Carvajal – The Center for Food Safety and the Center for Environmental Health filed suit in the Northern District of California to compel FDA and the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) to implement several major provisions of the Food Safety Modernization Act (“FSMA”). …
