Food and Drug Administration Issues Front-of-Package Nutrition La

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FDA Proposes Front-of-Pack Nutrition Label Rule

by: Food and Drug Law at Keller and Heckman of Keller and Heckman LLP - The Daily Intake

Tuesday, January 14, 2025

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On January 14, 2025, FDA issued a pre-publication version of a proposed rule requiring a front-of-package (FOP) nutrition label on most packaged foods. The proposed FOP nutrition label would highlight the amount of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars in a serving of food, as well as interpret the relative amounts of these nutrients, to help consumers quickly and easily identify how foods can be part of a healthy diet.
At a high level, the proposed rule would add 21 CFR 101.6, requiring the inclusion of a Nutrition Info box on the principal display panel of most foods that are required to display the Nutrition Facts label. In addition, the proposed rule would revise the requirements for the nutrient content claims “low sodium” and “low saturated fat.”
The proposed Nutrition Info box is intended to provide interpretive nutrition information in a convenient format. The Nutrition Info box format is similar in style to the Nutrition Facts Panel and would be required to be placed on the upper third of the principal display panel. The box would be required to include:
- The title “Nutrition Info;”
- A “Per serving” subheading and a statement of the serving size in household measure only;
- A percent daily value subheading above the declaration of the quantitative percent daily value and the interpretive “Low,” “Med,” and “High” descriptions; and
- Information on only saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars.
The interpretive descriptions are set at a proposed range of 5% daily value or less for “Low;” 6% to 19% daily value for “Med;” and 20% daily value or more for “High.” These ranges are based on longstanding consumer and nutrition education initiatives and existing regulatory definitions for nutrient content claims.
The proposed rule includes exemptions for foods exempt from nutrition labeling under 21 CFR 101.9(j). FDA also considered an exemption for products with insignificant amounts of saturated fat, sodium, and sugar, but ultimately declined to propose that exemption.
FDA is accepting comments on the proposed rule until May 16, 2025, at regulations.gov under docket number FDA-2024-N-2910.