The public comment period for new labeling rules on flavored milk an 17 other dairy products will end May 21 at 11:59 p.m. eastern time, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposal posted on the Federal Register Feb. 20.
If implemented, the rules would change the “standard of identity” for milk to allow certain artificial sweeteners considered “safe and suitable” to be included in the product without additional information on the label such as “reduced calorie.” Any sweetener would still be required to be listed among the ingredients. The proposed rule change was suggested in a joint petition from the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) submitted to the FDA back on March 16, 2009. Currently, milk products containing artificial sweeteners — most commonly chocolate milk — are required to include a claim regarding the nutrient content that notes a calorie reduction caused by the lack of nutrients. Products sweetened with artificial flavorings such as aspartame or sucralose contain fewer calories than equivalent products sweetened with nutritive flavorings such as sugar. As depicted in the FDA graphic reprinted here, the rules would make it so that the labels of artificially sweetened milk products would look the same as their counterparts made without those sweeteners. The dairy groups say that the additional label information is unappealing to children, who prefer flavored milk over conventional milk. They also say that updating the standard of identity for milk would “promote honesty” and establish consistency across dairy labels. Other products that would be affected by the rule change include nonfat dry milk, eggnog, half-and-half and sour cream.
The News Desk team at Food Safety News covers breaking developments, regulatory updates, recalls, and key topics shaping food safety today. These articles are produced collaboratively by our editorial staff.
As part of its enforcement activities, the Food and Drug Administration sends warning letters to entities under its jurisdiction. Some letters are not posted for public view until weeks or
A man has been given a suspended sentence in England for food safety offences.
Arfan Sultan, from Ilford, was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Nov. 14 following an investigation
A grocery company in New Zealand has been fined for selling recalled hummus products that may have contained Salmonella.
Foodstuffs South Island was told to pay $39,000 (U.S.
Rwanda has lifted a ban on some South African food products that was put in place in 2017 because of a Listeria outbreak that sickened more than 1,000 people.
The Food and Drug Administration uses import alerts to enforce U.S. food safety regulations for food from foreign countries. The agency updates and modifies the alerts as needed.
Recent
Prairie Farms is announcing a recall of select Prairie Farms Gallon Fat Free Milk produced at its Dubuque, IA, facility and distributed to Woodman’s stores in Illinois and Wisconsin.
Aoun brand tahineh is under recall in Canada because of contamination with Salmonella.
The recall was triggered by test results from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
The recalled tahineh was
Thanksgiving is a time for family, friends and feasting. Once the holiday meal ends, the spotlight turns to enjoying the leftovers in the days ahead. To keep those leftovers safe
