On August 28, 2024, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) released an updated Guideline on Substantiating Animal-Raising or Environment-Related Labeling Claims for meat and poultry product labeling. Animal-raising...more
In October of this year, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals analyzed the issue of federal preemption in the context of poultry product labeling. The plaintiff in Cohen v. ConAgra Brands, Inc., brought a putative class action...more
A few months ago, we analyzed the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Webb v. Trader Joe’s Company, No. 19-56389 (June 4, 2021), which held that a private plaintiff’s challenge to poultry labeling claims were preempted by federal...more
On September 3, 2021, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) opened a comment period in advance of a proposed rule on labeling requirements for meat and poultry products comprised...more
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently published an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) seeking public comment pertaining to the labeling of meat and...more
In a unanimous precedential decision, a Ninth Circuit panel recently affirmed the dismissal of a putative class action against Trader Joe’s, which alleged that the statement “Up to 5% Retained Water” on Trader Joe’s poultry...more
Earlier this month, this blog analyzed the preemption provisions of the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) and the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA), which together regulate the labeling of meat and poultry products. We...more
On June 4, 2021, a panel of judges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of consumer poultry labeling claims against Trader Joe’s on the ground that those claims were federally preempted. The consumer...more
Welcome to our monthly digest of litigation and regulatory highlights impacting the food and beverage industry. February saw another win for industry on the vanilla front, a preemption win in California state court, and FDA...more
When you shop, can you tell whether the food you are buying has been genetically modified — is it GMO (genetically modified organism)? Do you know whether all genetically modified foods are actually considered to be...more
On September 28, 2018 and December 27, 2018, we blogged about the challenge to Missouri’s meatless meat statute. The statute purports to prohibit designating a product as meat unless it has been obtained from harvested...more
On June 13, 2017, FDA delayed the compliance date for the Nutrition Facts and Supplement Facts Label and Serving Size final rules, providing additional time for implementation. The rules were finalized in May 2016 and...more
Food for Thought is a review of significant court decisions affecting the food, beverage, dietary supplements and personal care products industry. Although many cases in this edition focus on class certification, others...more
On February 12, 2016, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision barring the California Attorney General’s efforts to enforce nonfunctional slack fill provisions against Del Real LLC, a producer of Mexican...more