Baking Associations Request 5 Years to Comply with FDA Labeling Changes

In their comments to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the American Bakers Association (ABA) and the Retail Bakers of America both requested five years to comply with upcoming changes to the Nutrition Facts Panel.

The FDA’s proposed Nutrition Facts Panel changes, published March 3, 2014, recommended an effective date of 60 days after the date of the final rule’s  publication in the Federal Register, with a compliance date two years after the effective date. However, results from an ABA-sponsored packaging survey showed that bakery and packaging companies would need significantly more time to implement changes since the sweeping proposals would affect every packaged food product in the marketplace.

If adopted, the proposed changes would include:

• A greater understanding of nutrition science
  • Information about added sugars.
  • Updated daily values for nutrients such as sodium, dietary fiber, and Vitamin D.
  • Manufacturers to declare the amount of potassium and Vitamin D on the label.
  • Removing “Calories from Fat” from labels
• Updated serving size requirements and new labeling requirements for certain package sizes
  • Change the serving size requirements to reflect how people eat and drink today.
  • Require that packaged foods, including drinks, that are typically consumed in one sitting be labeled as a single serving and that calorie and nutrient information be declared for the entire package.
  • For packages that are larger and could be consumed in one sitting or multiple sittings, manufacturers would have to provide “dual column” labels to indicate both “per serving” and “per package” calories and nutrient information.

• Refreshed design
  • Make calories and serving sizes more prominent to emphasize parts of the label that are important in addressing current public health concerns.
  • Shift the Percent Daily Value to the left of the label, so it would come first.
  • Change the footnote to more clearly explain the meaning of the Percent Daily Value.

Read more about proposed changes to the Nutrition Facts Label.