A group of food manufacturers reportedly is encouraging the government to delay the adoption of a revised Nutrition Facts label for food products.
According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Grocery Manufacturers Association and other food producers issued a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Thomas Price urging him to postpone the rollout of the new labeling initiative until May 2021. Currently, the rollout is set for July 2018.
The letter, which was signed by several food executives and food trade group members, says delaying the revised food labels “is urgently needed in order to ease regulatory burden on the economy.”
The revised food labels include an emphasis on calories and changes to serving sizes, as well as standardized “use by” date information and new facts about added sugars. The sugar info might embarrass food companies that produce processed food items high in sugar, according to the CSPI.
Michael F. Jacobson, CSPI president, says food manufacturers should embrace transparency in their food labels. Jacobson says in a statement:
“It is mind-boggling that the food industry is fighting transparency and consumer information even though that’s exactly what their customers want. Not only is industry undermining the public’s health — it is undermining its own credibility.”
According to Consumerist, Dr. Scott Gottlieb — President Donald Trump’s nominee for FDA commissioner — has indicated that he would consider delaying the revised Nutrition Facts label.
Gottlieb said he is “philosophically in favor of trying to make sure we do these things efficiently, not only because it imposes undue costs on manufacturers to constantly be updating their labels, but we also have to keep in mind it create confusion for consumers if the labels are constantly changing,” according to Food & Wine.
Consumerist says some companies have already adopted the revised nutrition labels.
Are you confused by the date labels on foods? Check out “What ‘Sell By’ and ‘Use By’ Dates on Foods Really Mean.”
What do you think about the food manufacturers’ urge to delay the new food labels? Share your thoughts below or on Facebook.
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