On June 14, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) announced that it was implementing a multi-step effort to strengthen the substantiation of animal-raising claims. Animal-raising claims are voluntary marketing...more
Labeling of meat and poultry products has been the subject of numerous lawsuits, in which labels claiming products are, for example, “natural,” “humanely-raised,” “antibiotic-free,” are alleged to be fraudulent, amongst other...more
PFAS – per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – are a family of human-made chemicals, often referred to as “forever chemicals,” and are found in a wide range of products used by the food supply industry. Because of their...more
Schumer Urges USDA To Delay Hemp Rule - U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to “delay the issuance of a U.S. Domestic Hemp Production Program final rule until 2022 and...more
Harvard Law School’s Animal Law & Policy Clinic (Clinic) submitted a petition on June 9 to the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), urging it to adopt a labeling approach for the emerging category of cell-based...more
The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) updated two labeling guidelines involving animal raising claims in December. Labeling Guideline on Documentation Needed to Substantiate Animal Raising Claims...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - France to Ban Mass Culling of Male Chicks - France’s agriculture minister has reportedly announced that the country will prohibit the mass culling of male chicks shortly after they...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued an updated Labeling Guideline on Statements That Bioengineered or Genetically-Modified Ingredients or Animal Feed Were Not...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued a revised compliance guideline for substantiating animal raising claims on labels for meat and poultry products. This updated...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - FDA Issues Warning Letters, Consumer Update On CBD, Sparking Litigation Against CBD Cos. - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a consumer update on cannabidiol...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - USDA Receives Hundreds Of Comments On Hemp Interim Rule - Two weeks after opening a comment period on an interim final rule on hemp farming, the U.S. Department of Agriculture...more
In the last few months, a handful of class actions have been filed challenging label claims regarding the treatment of the animals providing the food item in question. This appears to be a new food litigation trend, as...more
On April 17, 2019, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a proposed rule that would eliminate the requirement that certain packages of meat or poultry products...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - CBD Banned from New York Restaurants, in Limbo in Idaho - New York City’s health department has reportedly ordered restaurants to stop serving products that contain cannabidiol...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - USDA, FDA Announce Joint Regulation of Cell-Cultured Livestock and Poultry Products - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - FDA Provides Update on Antimicrobial Resistance - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published Commissioner Scott Gottlieb’s September 14, 2018, remarks delivered at...more
“Accurate Labels Act” Introduced in Congress - U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) have introduced the Accurate Labels Act, a proposed amendment to the Fair Packaging...more
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently released the Spring 2018 Unified Agenda of Regulatory Actions for federal agencies, which outlines the rulemaking actions currently under development in each federal agency....more
Agriculture Committee Introduces 2018 Farm Bill - The U.S. House of Representatives’ Agriculture Committee has introduced the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 (Farm Bill). ...more
China to Tariff U.S. Food Commodities - China has reportedly imposed tariffs on imports of U.S.-made agricultural products, including pork, soybeans, wheat, beef, orange juice, whiskey and corn, following the United...more
Washington Bans PFAs in Food Packaging - Washington Governor Jay Inslee has signed into law the Healthy Food Packaging Act (H.B. 2658/S.B. 6396), making the state the first in the country to ban perfluorinated chemicals...more
In In Re Processed Egg Products Antitrust Litigation, No. 2:08-Md.-02002-GP (E.D. Pa., June 10, 2014), the plaintiffs alleged that they purchased eggs from the defendant egg producing cooperatives, and that the plaintiffs had...more