FDA Finalizes Changes to Nutrition Facts Labels on Food
The Food and Drug Administration is finalizing changes in nutrition facts labels on food and dietary supplements. Under one final rule (here), FDA is revising the information required on nutrition facts labels and change how the nutrition facts are presented. That final rule also requires that manufacturers keep records on added sugar, the amount of dietary fiber, and certain vitamin contents, and amends requirements for food for small children and pregnant women. FDA’s other final rule (here) increases recommended serving sizes to bring them into line with current eating habits, and requires an additional column of nutrition information for packages that contain more than one serving but could be consumed in one sitting. Compliance with new labeling requirements is required by July 26, 2019 for small businesses with less than $10 million per year in annual food sales, and by July 26, 2018 for all other businesses.
Changes to Format and Info on Nutrition Facts Labels
FDA’s is amending nutrition facts labels "to reflect new scientific information, including the link between diet and chronic diseases such as obesity and heart disease," and "make it easier for consumers to make better informed food choices," it said in a fact sheet (here).
Label information requirements. The final rule changes what is required to be reported on nutrition facts labels, as follows:
Elimination of calories from fat. FDA is removing the declaration of “calories from fat” because the type of fat is more relevant than the overall total fat intake, it said.
Added sugars. Nutrition facts labels will now have to declare the amount of added sugars on nutrition labels. Labels will now have to declare the amount of "total sugars," and indented below say how many grams of added sugars are included. Labels must also list a daily reference value for added sugar.
New vitamins and minerals. FDA is updating the list of vitamins and minerals to remove the requirement that vitamins A and C be reported on nutrition facts labels, and add a new requirement that vitamin D and potassium be reported. Reporting of vitamins A and C on nutrition labels are still allowed, but are now optional.
Recommended daily values. FDA is also updating the “recommended daily values” used to calculate the percentage of recommended daily consumption for each nutrient contained in a food, including for sodium and fiber. The agency is also adding a footnote to labels to explain to consumers that “*The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.”
New format. Nutrition and supplements facts labels will now require larger text for the amount of calories, serving size and number of servings per container. The final rule eliminates the requirement that a footnote table list the reference values for certain nutrients for 2,000 and 2,500 calorie diets, said FDA. A comparison of the current and new labels is available (here).
Recordkeeping. The final rule requires records be kept to support the declaration of certain nutrients. For products that include dietary fiber, added sugars, vitamin E, and folate and folic acid in the labeling of the food associated with such records. FDA is requiring manufacturers to maintain records and verify their declarations on these nutrients. Records must be kept for at least two years. Similar requirements are being implemented for added sugars in foods subject to non-enzymatic browning and fermentation. However, for manufacturers of products containing such added sugars as well as natural sugars, that are unable to reasonably approximate the amount of added sugars in a serving of food, the final rule allows manufacturers to submit a petition to request an alternative means of compliance, said FDA.
FDA Final Rule Ups Serving Sizes, Requires Additional Labeling
FDA's other concurrently-issued final rule modifies requirements for serving sizes, and requires an additional column on nutritional facts labels in some cases. FDA said it is making these changes because of changes to how food is being consumed, as well as because of a recognition that container sizes can change the amount of food consumers are likely to eat.
Bigger serving sizes. For certain foods, FDA’s final rule changes the amount of food the agency considers a single serving to reflect the amount that people currently eat. For ice cream and soda, the recommended serving size will be higher.
Single-serving containers. FDA is requiring that all containers that include less than twice the recommended serving size be labeled as a single-serving container. Examples of affected containers include 20 ounce soda bottles and 15 ounce cans of soup. For these containers, the calories and other nutrients will be required to be labeled as one serving because people typically consume it in one sitting, said FDA.
Dual-column labeling. For containers with at least twice the recommended serving size, up to three times the recommended serving size, FDA will require an additional column on the label that lists nutritional information for the entire package.