Food & Nutrition

FDA Hosts Public Meeting and Listening Sessions on Added Sugars 

This week, FDA hosted a public meeting and listening sessions on strategies for reducing added sugar consumption in the U.S. The public meeting provided an opportunity to discuss current added sugar consumption and explore what federal agencies, communities, and private industries are doing to encourage the reduction consumption of added sugars. Speakers emphasized the food and beverage industry's role in added sugar consumption and its responsibility to help reduce added sugar consumption in the food supply. Following the public meeting, FDA facilitated two-day listening sessions for an opportunity for food industry stakeholders and the community to provide feedback on this topic. The agency will review input received from the public meeting and listening sessions and will accept written comments until January 22, 2024. 

On a related note, a study published in Public Health Nutrition examined the effects of front-of-package (FOP) added sugar disclosure statements in assessing ingredients and perceived healthfulness of children's beverages. Researchers suggest that FOP disclosures on children's beverage packages may increase caregivers' understanding of product ingredients and selection in purchasing 'healthier' beverages.

President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition to Host Feast & Fitness Event 

The President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition (PCSFN) is hosting a “Feast & Fitness” event on November 13, at 6 pm (EST) to discuss tips and recommendations on how the public can eat 'healthy' and stay active during the holiday season. The event will feature Council member Oluwaferanmi Oyedeji Okanlami and chefs who will discuss 'healthy' cooking tips, facilitate a discussion on ingredients popular among Indigenous communities, and share a video introducing more members of the PCSFN. This initiative event was discussed during the Council's second annual meeting on October 26, 2023. The Council serves as a federal advisory committee that aims to engage, educate, and empower individuals to adopt a healthy lifestyle that 'includes regular physical activity and good nutrition.'

NASEM Food Forum to Host 30th Anniversary Symposium

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Food Forum is hosting its 30th Anniversary Symposium on November 30, 2023, from 9 am - 4 pm (EST) to explore major developments in the field of food, nutrition, and agriculture over the past 30 years. The symposium will review the history of the Food Forum and will feature discussions on the future of food in light of challenges such as climate change and population growth, new technologies to address these challenges, and how these challenges affect and are influenced by health equity issues. The event will feature notable speakers, including Susan Mayne, former director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at FDA, and Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee member Angela Odoms-Young.

NYC Passes Legislation to Require Added Sugar Warnings on Restaurant Menus

The New York City Council passed legislation, known as the Sweet Truth Act, that may lead to the requirement of warnings on restaurant menu items high in added sugars. This law will require chain restaurants to post a sugar warning icon on the menu or menu board next to all menu items that exceed 50 grams of added sugar and post a warning statement at the point of purchase at food service establishments. This legislation builds on the city's sugar warning label requirements passed in 2021 that only covers prepackaged menu items by expanding the requirements to cover all menu items. However, the warning label requirements will only become effective one year after the FDA decides to include added sugars as a part of the agency's menu labeling requirements, a move FDA has not said they plan to make.

Study Suggests Ultra-Processed Food Consumption Increases CVD Risk 

A study published in BMC Medicine examined the association between ultra-processed foods (UPF) consumption and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The study suggested that higher UPF intake, according to the NOVA classification system, is associated with a higher risk of CVD, while substituting unprocessed or minimally processed foods for UPF is associated with a lower risk of CVD. The study classified cheese, canned fish, high-fiber bread, and fried potato and processed foods, and soft drinks, sweets/candies, chocolate, snacks, cookies, cakes, low-fiber bread, ice cream, sausage, and bacon as UPFs. Researchers suggested that future studies are needed to further assess the potential pathways between UPF intake and CVD.

Illinois State Legislature Introduces Bill to Ban Four Food Additives

The Illinois State legislature introduced SB 2637, a bill that would prohibit the manufacture, sale, and distribution of food products that contain brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, and red dye 3 in the state, effective January 1, 2027. This bill mimic's California's recently passed AB 418, a bill that will ban these same four food additives effective January 1, 2027. The New York State legislature introduced similar legislation in both the Assembly and Senate that would prohibit the manufacture, sale, and distribution of food products that contain brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, red dye 3, and titanium dioxide beginning January 1, 2025. These bills have yet to pass either chamber.

Agriculture

Legislators Issue Calls to Extend 2018 Farm Bill 

According to Politico, Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Senate Agriculture ranking member John Boozman (R-AK), and House Agriculture Chair G.T. Thompson (R-PA) are discussing details to issue a one-year Farm Bill extension, through October 2024. G.T. Thompson also reported that the House will not pass a Farm Bill in December, predicting that the bill will be ready "at the earliest" by January 2024. House Agriculture ranking member David Scott (D-GA) also published a statement calling for a one-year extension of the 2018 Farm Bill. This bill expired September 30, 2023.

Global

FAO Publishes State of Food and Agriculture 2023 True Cost of Food Report

FAO published the report, The State of Food and Agriculture 2023: Revealing the True Cost of Food to Transform Agrifood Systems. The report examines the true cost of food for sustainable agrifood systems, revealing that current agrifood systems impose ‘significant’ hidden costs on our health, environment, and society, equivalent to $10 trillion a year. The report found that more than 70% of hidden costs are driven by unhealthy diets that are high in UPFs, fats, and sugars, leading to obesity and non-communicable diseases, particularly high in high- and upper-middle-income countries. The report argues for more regular and detailed analysis by governments and the private sector of the true costs of agrifood systems. The report urges governments to use true cost accounting to transform agrifood systems to address the climate crisis, poverty, inequality, and food security.

Fun Fact: In Japan, square watermelons are grown to make them easier to stack and store.