Transcript Nutrition Labeling Presented by

Nutrition Labeling
Presented by:
Camille Brewer, Associate Director, Office of Nutritional Products, Labeling and
Dietary Supplements
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug
Administration, College Park, MD
Points to Cover
The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act
of 1990 (NLEA)
• Background
• Framework for Decision-making
• Education
• Next Steps
Background
Rulemaking in the US
Triggering
•TEvents
r
i
Law
Regulations
NLEA Triggering events
• Lack of national labeling laws
• Increased national focus on the importance
of nutrition
• Consumer activism
Notice and Comment Rulemaking
LAW
ANPRM
Proposed Rule
Final Rule
Federal Responsibility for
Nutrition Labeling
Advertising
Federal Trade Commission
• Enforcer of federal truth-in-advertising laws.
• Enforcement activities focus on:
 Claims for foods, ,drugs dietary supplements, and
other products promising health benefits.
 Health fraud on the Internet.
 Weight-loss advertising
 Advertising and marketing directed to children.
NLEA Objectives
• Clear up consumers’ confusion about food label
• Aid consumers in making healthy food choices, and
• Encourage product innovation by giving
manufacturers an incentive to improve the quality
of the food and make more healthy food choices
available to consumers
• Federal pre-emption
Framework for Decision Making
Framework
• Nutrition Science
• Law
• Consumer Studies
Framework: Nutrition Science
Criteria for Mandatory Status
• Quantitative intake
recommendations have been
made in scientific consensus
documents.
• Nutrient is of particular public
health significance
• Considered relative priority
in order of presentation
Framework: Nutrition Science
“The Report’s major conclusion is
that over consumption of certain
dietary components is now a major
concern for Americans. While
many food factors are involved,
chief among them is the
disproportionate consumption of
foods high in fats, often at the
expense of foods high in complex
carbohydrates and fiber that may
be more conducive to health.”
Framework: Law
• Nutrition information is
mandatory
• Standard format
• Exemptions and special formats
Framework: Law
Nutrition Information is required for all
products:
• Intended for human consumption; and
• Offered for sale
• Unless there is an exemption or special
labeling provision
Framework: Law
Exemptions & Special Labeling Provisions
• Small businesses based on gross
sales (after May 8, 1995, retailers
only)
• Low volume food products
• Food served or sold in
establishments that serve for
immediate consumption
• Ready-to-eat foods not for
immediate consumption
• Foods of no nutritional significance
Exemptions & Special
Labeling
• Bulk foods for further manufacturing
• Raw fruits, vegetables, and seafood
• Custom processed fish and game
meat
• Small packages (less than 12 sq.in.)
• Food sold from bulk containers
(nutrition information on display)
Framework: Law
• Nutrition information must comply with
specified format when on a package
• Nutrition information must be displayed at
the point of purchase when not in a package
form
• All nutrient and food component quantities
shall be declared in relation to a serving
Framework: Law
Calories
Calories from fat*
Total fat
Saturated fat*
Trans fat (required 1/1/06)
Cholesterol*
Sodium
Total carbohydrate
Dietary fiber*
Sugars*
Protein*
Vitamin A*
Vitamin C*
Calcium*
Iron*
• Must be declared if present in more than
insignificant amount or an alternative format may
be used
Trans fat declaration
•Separate line
•No % Daily Value
Voluntary Nutrients
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Calories from saturated fat
Polyunsaturated fat
Monounsaturated fat
Potassium
Soluble Fiber
Insoluble fiber
Sugar Alcohol
Other Carbohydrate
Other vitamins and minerals for which RDIs have
been established
• Beta-carotene (as % of Vitamin A)
Claims Trigger Nutrition Labeling
If a food, including dietary
supplements, bears a nutrient content
or health claim or other nutrition
information it cannot use an exemption
and must have nutrition labeling
Pre-NLEA Voluntary Nutrition
Information
Framework: Law
Daily Values
Reference Daily Intakes (RDIs)
Based on NAS Recommended Dietary Allowances
Daily Reference Values (DRVs)
Fat
Saturated Fat
Total carbohydrate Fiber
Potassium
Protein
Cholesterol
Sodium
Nutrition Label: Footnote
• Percent Daily Values are based on a
2000 calorie diet
• Daily values may be higher or lower depending on caloric
needs.
• List of DRV nutrients with DV for 2000 and 2500 calorie diet
• Voluntary calorie conversion information (i.e., calories per
gram for fat, carbohydrate, and protein)
Framework: Consumer Studies
Nutrition
Facts
Framework: Consumer Studies
Overall Value of Consumer Studies
• Emphasis on consumer behavior
• Helps distinguish between consumer
preference for information and the
information used by consumers to make
judgments on nutritional content
Framework: Consumer Studies
%DV
• Percent Daily Value
• Few consumers were able to interpret
absolute amounts of nutrient (e.g. g or
mg) to assist with purchase decisions.
• % Daily Value concept resulted in more
accurate use of label information for
choices based on nutrition.
Framework: Consumer Studies
%DV
• Effective use of %Daily Value improves
with educational material.
<Useful to determine high and low for a nutrient
<Can be used to estimate context for total diet
• %Daily Value is linked to Nutrient
Content claims
Format
• The graphic requirements of the nutrition
label is specified in the regulations
• Includes information on:
Bolding
Hairlines
Type size
Case
Order
Full Vertical Format
• Package has more
than 40 square
inches of space
available for labeling
• At least 3 continuous
vertical inches
“Bilingual”
• Separate Nutrition Facts panel
may be used, or combined
• Second language following
the English
• Numeric characters identical
in both languages need not be
repeated
• All required nutrition
information must be included
in both languages
Tabular format
• Full vertical format does not fit on
package
• Insufficient continuous vertical space
for the requirement components,
including the mandatory declaration of
iron
Aggregate format
Three
different
food
products
Ingredients: Cod fish oil, gelatin, water,
and glycerin.
Education
NUTRITION:
To know the facts . . .
. . . Use the food label
Next Steps?
Modernization of Nutrition Facts
Serving size information
Prominence of Calorie information
The current Daily Values are based
on Reference values in the Code of
Federal Regulations.
Now mandatory
Emerging Scientific Information
Next Steps: Expansion of
Consumer Studies and Education
• Relationship of “front” to “back” label
• Symbols
• Use of Web for education
• Continued collaboration in integrating Dietary
Guidelines, Food Guidance System
(myPyramid), and Labeling Educational
Messages
Nutrition Facts Label
A Public Health Success
• Clear up consumers’ confusion about food label
 Consumers use the label to compare foods
• Aid consumers in making healthy food choices
Public health benefits estimated as high as
 $26 billion
• Encourage product innovation by giving manufacturers an
incentive to improve the quality of the food and make more
healthy food choices available to consumers
 NLEA fostered product innovation
• Established Federal pre-emption
Thank you!