Net quantity is simply the amount of food in the package, which is displayed as weight, liquid measure, or number of items. In the United States, food labeling is primarily regulated by two agencies: the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Within the USDA, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) oversees the National Organic Program (NOP) and the food grading system. The USDA also has the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS), which regulates the labeling of meat, poultry, and peeled egg products. However, the FDA and USDA are not the only two agencies that play a role in regulating food labeling. Other agencies are also involved in the regulation of certain labels. These powers include the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which ensures that labels are fair and not misleading. the Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade (TTB) of the Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for alcohol labels; and the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), which participates in food labelling and international trade treaty negotiations.
In addition, various states and municipalities are establishing food labelling requirements, although efforts have been made in recent years to rescind these local mandates. The Food and Drug Administration`s food labeling regulations begin at 21 C.F.R. 101.01 and span several hundred pages. Even the FDA`s guidelines for industry, an excellent and concise resource for food labeling, are 130 pages long. These volumes contain everything you need to know, how to name a product, where to place the required elements on the label, how to provide nutritional content claims such as “low fat” and “high fibre”, and much more. Trans fat labelling – Trans fats are chemically modified food ingredients that raise cholesterol levels and have been linked to heart disease. In 2015, the FDA found that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), the main source of trans fats, are no longer widely recognized as safe. June 18, 2018 was the date set by the FDA for most food manufacturers to comply and stop producing and using PHOs, but the FDA has allowed some foods to have an extended compliance date.
Prior to this ban, the FDA required food manufacturers to include grams of trans fats on nutrition labels. No product is ready to be put on the shelves until it has undergone a thorough labelling check. This is what we call “label review,” and our customers know they are receiving advice on labeling and marketing design. Product labeling may be regulated by the FDA, USDA, or TTB. If you do it wrong, food manufacturers expose them to a number of risks: browse resources on nutrition labels, organic food labels, animal welfare certifications, and food labeling laws. When it comes to label approval, the FDA and FSIS take different approaches. This is mainly due to the Agency`s authorisation status. The FFDCA, which gives the FDA the authority to regulate most of the food supply, does not require the FDA to approve food labels before they are put on the market.
On the other hand, the FMIA, PPIA and EPIA require FSIS to respectfully approve labels for meat, poultry and egg products. However, FSIS has a system where the agency “generically endorses” most labels. If there is a problem with a food label that has not been pre-approved or has received generic approval from FSIS, certain enforcement mechanisms are available to authorities. For example, if the FDA becomes aware of a mislabeled food, such as a Nutrition Fact Panel, that does not comply with regulations, the FDA may issue a warning letter. The FDA may also sue the food manufacturer or processor in hopes of seizing the mislabeled product or having the court issue an injunction against the food manufacturer or processor. If a court issues an injunction, the food manufacturer or processor must generally stop selling the falsely marked product and no longer mislabel the product. In addition to agencies, consumers can challenge the label by filing a product liability suit or by filing a lawsuit under one of the federal laws that govern food labeling. * Terms such as “functional foods” or “nutraceuticals” are widely used in the market. These foods are regulated by the FDA under the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, although they are not explicitly defined by law. For more information on food labeling, check out International Trade Reading Rooms, Sampling Programs, Food Security, and Other Related Topics.
Congress passed the Nutrition Labelling and Education Act (NLEA) in 1990. The NLEA gave the FDA the authority to set uniform standards for nutrition labeling. Prior to 1990, information such as portion sizes, calorie counts, and the level of fat, carbohydrates, fiber, ectara were not required on food labels. The NLEA focused on the relationship between food content and healthy eating and was the beginning of providing consumers with information about food content beyond a list of ingredients. The NLEA also regulates nutrition and health claims. Because of the NLEA, most food products had to have a panel of nutritional facts in the mid-1990s. The FDA revised NLEA implementing regulations, changing the appearance of the Nutrition Fact Panel in 2020. Natural Food Labeling – Both the FDA and FSIS have guidelines, but no regulations regarding natural food labeling. Both claim that “natural” means that no artificial or synthetic ingredients have been added. According to FSIS, a product labeled as natural does not contain artificial ingredients or color additives and is minimally processed. FSIS states that minimal processing means that the product has not been fundamentally altered during processing.
Find information on USDA Agricultural Marketing Service food quality labels, including variety labels and value-added labels.