FDA advances implementation of the new Nutrition Facts food label
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb released a statement on the agency’s update to the Nutrition Facts label, which includes significant changes to help consumers make more informed dietary choices while providing clear guidance to food manufacturers.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb released a statement on the agency’s update to the Nutrition Facts label, which includes significant changes to help consumers make more informed dietary choices while providing clear guidance to food manufacturers.
Toward those ends, the FDA is launching a major educational campaign for consumers and issuing several key guidance documents to industry to help implement the new label. The documents include a final guidance on various non-digestible carbohydrates that may be added to food to count them as fiber on the new label, as well as draft guidance to help industry declare added sugars on the label of honey, maple syrup, and certain cranberry products, and guidance on the proper labeling of honey and honey products.
“We've made it our goal to increase consumer awareness of the quantity of added sugars in food products consistent with recent dietary guideline recommendations,” explained Gottlieb. “The new label also contains the new daily value for added sugars, so consumers can better understand how foods with added sugars can fit into a healthy dietary pattern.”
To help food manufacturers determine appropriate serving sizes to include on labels, the requirements have been updated to reflect what people actually eat and drink. In a final guidance, the FDA addressed appropriate reference amounts customarily consumed for a variety of products.
“All of these guidances are reflective of the feedback we heard about the desire for more information on these important topics,” said Gottlieb. “As we move forward with implementing the new labeling, we believe these guidances will help provide information that industry has sought from the FDA by providing the agency’s current thinking on these topics.”
Gottlieb concluded by reiterating the importance of translating nutritional science into practical measures that can help consumers make better and more informed decisions about their diets and health while creating incentives for food producers to manufacture products that are healthier. “All Americans should have access to the best nutrition information for making healthy choices for themselves and their families,” he said. “I firmly believe that’s an important part of the FDA’s mission for protecting and promoting public health.”
Guidance for industry on food labeling and serving sizes
Industry resources on the changes to the nutrition facts label