FDA will be powerful enforcement partner in fighting false food labels
On October 20, 2009, I stated that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- which declared that it will join investigations into false and misleading food labeling - will be a powerful enforcement partner against deceptive nutritional claims.
I welcome the FDA's support of my ongoing investigations into potentially misleading national food label programs, including one that deems mayonnaise, sugary cereal and other nutritionally suspect foods "Smart Choices."My office's Smart Choices investigation is one of several involving possibly deceptive food labels that I have pursued - and continue to pursue - in recent years.
Now backed by the FDA, we are posting our own warning label to the food industry: set the labels straight. "Big Food" has been feeding big lies to consumers about nutritional value. Consumers can no longer stomach the deceptive labels that contribute to our nation's obesity epidemic.
The FDA will be a powerful enforcement partner against deceptive labeling that prevents consumers from making informed food choices for their families. At a time when healthcare efforts rightly focus on prevention of obesity and malnutrition, false and misleading labels may derail, destroy and delay such
laudable national goals.
My office is investigating the Smart Choices program to determine the research and reasoning behind a program that promotes fat-saturated
mayonnaise
and sugarstudded cereals as nutritionally sound choices. This investigation follows a long list of false food-label enforcement actions by my officethat have already compelled truth and change. We will continue to monitor the market for faux food facts that blur or block the truth about nutrition.
As part of my Smart Choices investigation, I have requested information from Smart Choices Program, Inc., the organizations which administer the program (NSF International and American Society for Nutrition), and major food manufacturers whose products bear the Smart Choices label, including Kellogg Company, PepsiCo, Inc. and General Mills, Inc.
Our investigation seeks details about the consumer research and selection criteria driving the Smart Choices program; the process and fees involved in administering the program; and any payments or developmental role that major food manufacturers might have provided for the program.
