Posted January 10, 2014
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently
decline requested by three federal judges to determine whether the term “natural”
includes genetically engineered (GE) ingredients, according to an article by
Food Navigator USA available here.
Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers, of the Northern District
of California, first asked FDA to make the determination in a deceptive
marketing lawsuit involving “all-natural” claims on Mission tortilla chips, Cox v. Gruma Corp. Judge Jeffrey S. White, also of the Northern
District of California, in Barnes v.
Campbell Soup, followed Rogers’ lead, staying the lawsuit over natural
claims on soup for six months. In
addition, Judge Kevin McNulty, of the Northern District of New Jersey,
“administratively terminated” the General Mills cereal litigation pending FDA’s
response.
On January 6, 2014, FDA responded in a letter,
available here. In the letter, FDA declined to define the
term “natural” or change its stated policy that “natural” on food labels means
that “nothing artificial or synthetic (including all color additives regardless
of source) has been included in, or has been added to, a food that would not
normally be expected to be in the food.”
The letter continued, “If FDA were inclined to revoke,
amend, or add to this policy, we would likely embark on a public process, such
as issuing a regulation or formal guidance, in order to determine whether to
make such a change; we would not do so in the context of litigation between
private parties.”
FDA also mentioned that food public health and safety
matters are “largely occupying the limited resources that FDA has to address
food matters” and because “FDA operates in a world of limited resources, [it]
necessarily must prioritize which issues to address.”
Meanwhile, the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA)
told FDA it plans to file a petition asking for a rule that would allow GE
foods to be labeled as “natural,” according to a Politico article available here.
The letter from GMA is available here.
For more information on food labeling, please visit the
National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
