Food & Nutrition

NASEM Releases Pre-Publication Report on Role of Seafood in Child Development

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) published a pre-publication of an FDA-sponsored report that examined associations between seafood intake for children, adolescents, and pregnant and lactating women and child growth and development. The report found that most children, adolescents, and women of childbearing age do not consume the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA)-recommended weekly amount of seafood. NASEM also found insufficient evidence to revise seafood consumption guidelines but emphasized the need to identify strategies to help individuals meet current seafood consumption guidelines and overcome barriers to its consumption. The pre-publication report also makes several recommendations for federal agencies, including that USDA re-evaluate its federal nutrition programs to support greater inclusion of seafood in meal patterns and that FDA, EPA, and USDA develop consumer outreach to better support levels of seafood consumption that are consistent with the DGAs, among others. FDA revealed that the final report is anticipated for release in May 2024, and NASEM is hosting a webinar to provide an overview of key conclusions and recommendations of the pre-publication report on March 26, 2024. 

House Sends Letter Urging Plant-Based Meal Options in Federal Facilities 

Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) and 54 House Representatives sent a letter to President Biden requesting that the Administration collaborate with federal agencies to increase the availability of vegetarian and plant-based food options at federal facilities. In the letter, the Representatives argue that research indicates that dietary shifts can help meet U.S. climate goals and that a plant-based diet results in 75% less greenhouse gas emissions compared with a conventional diet. The group recommends that offering a plant-based meal option at federal facilities may help reduce the federal government’s carbon footprint and promote the health of consumers. 

Senate Introduces Expanding Access to Local Foods Act

Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) introduced the Expanding Access To (EAT) Local Foods Act to promote economic opportunities for farmers, fishermen, and producers, strengthen the food supply chain, and increase access to locally sourced, fresh, healthy, and nutritious food in underserved communities. The bill would establish a permanent grant program for state and tribal governments to procure local foods for distribution to hunger relief programs and leverage government procurement and purchasing power to increase access to locally-sourced foods, modeled after the USDA Local Food Purchase Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA). The legislation is supported by several food hubs, coalitions, and national organizations, including the Academy of Nutrition Dietetics, the American Heart Association, and the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, among others. 

On a related note, USDA announced $12 million in funding to strengthen market opportunities for U.S. agricultural products and increase access to locally grown food in underserved communities available through the agency’s Acer Access and Development Program, the Federal State Marketing Improvement Program, and the Micro-Grants for Food Security Program.

CSPI Report Advocates for Transparent Food Ingredient Labeling 

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) published a report that outlines the group’s concerns regarding food manufacturer's identification and labeling of food ingredients under terms such as “artificial flavor,” “natural flavor,” and “spices” in lieu of identifying each individual flavor substance by name on the ingredient list. CSPI argues that food and chemical companies and the flavor industry exploit GRAS regulations in which flavor substances that have not been formally deemed safe and approved by the FDA remain in the food supply. Additionally, CSPI makes several recommendations to federal, state, and local policymakers, including to require full disclosure of all ingredients, including spices and flavors, on packaged food and meat and poultry labels and that federal policymakers require all flavor substances and food chemicals to come to market via food additive petitions, among others. CSPI also recommends that states prohibit the use of select food additives, following suit of California’s recently enacted bill banning four food additives in the state beginning January 1, 2027.

Food Safety

FDA Extends Comment Period for Chapters of Preventive Controls Guidance

FDA extended the public comment period of two chapters of the draft guidance, Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food, by an additional 60 days from March 25, 2024, until May 24, 2024. The two chapters, Chapter 11 - Food Allergen Program and Chapter 16 - Acidified Foods, are designed to help food facilities comply with the preventive controls for human food rule mandated by the agency’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). These chapters are two of many that have been added since the draft guidance was first published in 2016. 

FDA Issues Import Alert for Food Products Containing Chemical Contaminants 

FDA issued an import alert for human food products with detectable levels of chemical contaminants that may present a safety concern to human health, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The import alert is one of the tools FDA employs to reduce exposure to chemical contaminants in the food supply if products are found to be contaminated with chemicals, including benzene, dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and PFAS, among others. While the agency has not set levels for most chemical contaminants in food, including PFAS, the agency continues to monitor the scientific literature and available toxicological reference values for PFAS as part of the FDA’s ongoing effort to assess the safety of exposure to PFAS from foods. 

Pennsylvania Introduces Bills to Prohibit Food Additives and Dyes in the State

The Pennsylvania General Assembly introduced two bills that would prohibit the manufacture, sale, and distribution of food products that contain select food additives and food dyes in the state. The state introduced a bill that would prohibit the manufacture, sale, and distribution of food products that contain red dye 3, red dye 40, yellow dye 5, yellow dye 6, blue dye 1, and blue dye 2 in the state, effective January 1, 2027. This bill follows the recent introduction of California’s first-of-its-kind bill that would prohibit schools from offering, selling, and providing food containing blue 1, blue 2, green 3, red 40, yellow 5, yellow 6, and food additive titanium dioxide in the state. Additionally, Pennsylvania also introduced a bill that would prohibit the manufacture, sale, and distribution of food products that contain brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, and butylated hydroxyanisole in the state, effective January 1, 2027. 

On a related note, the New York State Senate introduced a bill that would prohibit food products that contain red dye 3 in the state, beginning January 1, 2026. The bill's companion legislation has yet to pass either chamber.

Agriculture

USDA APHIS Seeks Partners to Develop AMR Dashboards to Promote Health

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is seeking partners to collaborate on the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) dashboards to provide stakeholders with data to address AMR in the U.S. APHIS is inviting partners with expertise in AMR data analysis, dashboard development, and stakeholder engagement to provide insights into AMR trends to inform strategies for antimicrobial use and monitor the emergence of resistant bacteria in the promotion of public health. APHIS intends to provide up to $3 million to support these efforts, which complements the agency’s ongoing work on AMR to monitor trends in AMR patterns, detect emerging resistance profiles, and better understand relationships between antimicrobial use and animal health management practices.

Global

Canada and Mexico Respond to USDA "Product of USA" Labeling Regulations

Canada's Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development published a joint statement in response to the release of the USDA final rule that amends regulations that will require the “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” label claim to be used on meat, poultry and egg products only when they are derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the U.S. In the statement, Canada issues the country’s concerns that the final rule does not take into account comments the country discussed related to its trading relationship with the U.S. and intends to raise the issue during a trilateral trade meeting with agriculture ministers from Mexico and Canada in late March. Additionally, Mexico released a statement rejecting the USDA final rule, arguing that the rule is discriminatory to Mexican producers and may establish barriers to Mexican cattle and beef exports. The compliance date for the final rule is January 1, 2026.

Nordic Council Publishes Report on Policy Tools for Healthy Eating in the Region

The Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers published a report that addresses the gap between current diets in the Nordic Region and the 2023 Nordic Nutrition Recommendations. The report emphasizes the need for policy interventions to drive behavioral shifts towards healthier and more sustainable diets through a Nordic behavior change framework that advocates for a multifaceted policy approach, including taxes, subsidies, public procurement, information campaigns, educational initiatives, nudging instruments, and labeling to encourage a shift in dietary behavior in the Region. The report features several policy recommendations for policymakers, including establishing joint Nordic strategies and policies to reduce marketing of unhealthy foods, enhance public procurement policies and culinary education, and develop a joint Nordic Climate Food Label, among others. This report supplements the 2023 Nordic Nutrition Recommendations launched in June 2023.

Fun Fact: The name broccoli comes from the Latin word brachium, which means "arm" or "branch," or the Italian word broccolo, which means "cabbage sprout."