October 25, 2019

BREAKING NEWS: FDA Grants Six Month Enforcement Discretion for Nutrition Facts Label Compliance Due Date

Greetings!

Yesterday, the FDA added a statement to its “ Industry Resources on the Changes to the Nutrition Facts Label ” webpage to declare that it does not intend to take enforcement actions on new nutrition labeling requirements for the first six months following the January 1, 2020 compliance date for businesses with more than $10 million in annual food sales. This statement appeared in its Question and Answer section as follows:

I understand that FDA has received multiple requests from manufacturers to provide additional time to comply with the new requirements. Do I still have to meet the January 1, 2020, compliance date? The FDA has heard from several manufacturers and groups that more time may be needed to meet all of the requirements. Therefore, during the first 6 months following the January 1, 2020, compliance date, FDA plans to work cooperatively with manufacturers to meet the new Nutrition Facts label requirements and will not focus on enforcement actions regarding these requirements during that time.

The American Bakers Association reported that the Food & Beverage Issue Alliance (FBIA) requested this enforcement discretion after discovering that 20-30% of products would need additional time for the transition to the new nutrition facts label. This FDA statement will give much-needed relief to the industry as it rushes create, review and print new label stock by the end of the year. Please note, however, that printers are expected to be backlogged, so labels will need to go to print several months prior to the due date. Prime Label will continue to monitor the FDA’s implementation of the new nutrition labeling requirements and notify our Label Alert subscribers as soon as new information is available. Our consultants are also available to assist companies with the peak workload in making this transition happen on time. PLC has expertise in creating NFPs in the new format or reviewing label copy before it goes to print. Best, Jesse Zuehlke, PhD

About Prime Label Consultants Prime Label Consultants has been helping companies navigate food labeling since 1972. PLC has deep expertise in nutrition labeling and food label review through its services, training and EZ Form Nutrition Navigator software . PLC food technologists have daily interaction with government regulators from our offices on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. We are a full service food label consulting business with over 3500 clients worldwide.

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