The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) has scheduled a public hearing regarding the labeling of food made from AquAdvantage Salmon. AquAdvantage Salmon is a genetically engineered Atlantic salmon produced by AquaBounty Technologies, Inc. The hearing will be held on September 21, 2010 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Hilton Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20850, phone: (301) 468-1100.
The purpose of this hearing is for FDA to explain the relevant legal principles for food labeling and to solicit information and views from interested persons on the application of these principles to the labeling of food made from AquAdvantage Salmon. Additional details about the hearing are provided in a formal notice published in the Federal Register on August 26, 2010 and in a related Background Document: Public Hearing on the Labeling of Food Made from the AquAdvantage Salmon.
The hearing will include presentations from agency officials and members of the public. Due to limited space, we encourage all persons who wish to attend the hearing, including those who wish to make an oral presentation, to register in advance online here.
Questions regarding registration should be directed to: Syreeta Jones, BL Seamon Corporation, 9001 Edmonston Road, Suite 200, Greenbelt, MD 20770, telephone: (301) 577-0244 ext. 4900, fax: (301) 577-5261, e-mail: sjones@blseamon.com.
For general information, if you need special accommodations due to a disability, or for requests to make an oral presentation, contact: Juanita Yates, CFSAN, FDA, telephone: 301-436-1731, e-mail: juanita.yates@fda.hhs.gov.
On September 19 and 20, 2010, FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) will be holding a public Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee (VMAC) meeting regarding the safety and effectiveness of the new animal drug that is the subject of a New Animal Drug Application concerning AquAdvantage Salmon. The VMAC meeting is a separate event apart from CFSAN’s public hearing. Additional information about the VMAC meeting is accessible at http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/VeterinaryMedicineAdvisoryCommittee/ucm201810.htm.
FDA to hold Public Hearing on the Labeling of Food Made from AquAdvantage Salmon
Canada to add Bisphenol A to Toxic Register
Canada is to formally declare bisphenol A hazardous to human health and officially inform the baby-product industry it will no longer be able to use the chemical in baby bottles. In unveiling the “precautionary and prudent” move, Health Minister Tony Clement proposed a limited ban of the widely used chemical, also found in hard plastic sports bottles and the lining of food cans. The government’s final decision will appear in the Canada Gazette, which publishes the official regulations of the government.
“Bisphenol A exposure from Can Coatings in Drinks” Health Canada
Health Canada has conducted the study into 22 soft drink and 16 beer samples as part of its on-going programme to investigate potential human health effects of BPA and boost its understanding of popular exposure to the substance.
BPA was detected in 20 of the 38 soft drinks and beers with levels of the chemical below the detection limit of 0.0045 µg/L in the other 18 samples. Bisphenol A was not detected in any glass bottle soft drink samples and only in one soft drink PET sample at a level of 0.018 µg/L.
All soft drink can samples were found to contain levels of BPA ranging from 0.019µg/L to 0.21 µg/L. Low levels of BPA were similarly detected in all beer can samples – ranging from 0.081µg/L to 0.54 µg/L. The chemical was also found in one bottled beer sample at a level of 0.054 µg/L.
According to Health Canada “The presence of BPA in canned beer samples and its absence (or lower level than canned) in bottled beer samples suggests that migration from can coatings is a source of BPA in canned beer products. The absence of BPA in surveyed plastic and glass bottled beverage products, and its presence in all of the corresponding surveyed canned beverage products, suggests that migration from can coatings is a source of BPA in canned beverage products.”
GMA urges vote on Food Safety Bill
The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) has urged the Senate to vote on the Food Safety Modernization Act. GMA President and CEO Pamela Bailey has stated “Now more than ever the time is right for the Senate to pass the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act. The food and beverage industry is committed to partnering with Congress, the Obama Administration and the FDA to strengthen and modernize our nation’s food safety system. The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act will provide the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with the resources and authorities the agency needs to help strengthen our nation’s food safety system by making prevention the focus of our food safety strategies. We urge the Senate to vote on this important, bipartisan bill as quickly as possible.”
UK cuts a ‘food poisoning time bomb’
A survey in August that was sent to 5,000 food safety trainers and training centres by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) claims that that food safety training had been negatively affected by the economic climate due to ‘cost cutting’ measures. David Kidney, CIEH Head of Policy is quoted as saying “This survey is cause for concern and if this trend continues public health could be put at risk – potentially triggering a food poisoning time bomb. Proper instruction or training of food handlers in food hygiene is a legal obligation and businesses must ensure that their staff have the skills to ensure the health and wellbeing of the customers they serve.The economic downturn has meant many businesses have had to rein in spending, which is understandable, but quality training needs to be seen as an investment which protects your staff, your business and your company’s reputation. A food poisoning outbreak can be the death knell for a food business and can have a myriad of consequences from reputational damage to business failure.”
FDA Announces Details on New Federal Menu Labeling Requirements
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released two documents that outline steps to help certain chain restaurants and vending machine companies comply with new federal nutrition labeling requirements. Section 4205 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the Act), signed into law by the President in March 2010 (also known as the health care reform legislation), set new federal requirements for nutrition labeling for foods sold at certain chain restaurants and similar retail food establishments with 20 or more locations. The Act also requires vending machine operators who own or operate 20 or more vending machines to provide calorie content for certain food items.
The documents released by the FDA include:
A final guidance for industry regarding the effect of the new federal nutrition labeling requirements on state and local laws.
A draft guidance describing implementation of certain provisions of the federal law. Some of these include posting the number of calories for standard menu items on menus and menu boards, including drive-through menu boards. This draft guidance is open to comments from the public through www.regulations.gov (click on Submit Comments; in the keyword field, enter FDA-2010-D-0370 and then “Search”). By March 23, 2011, the FDA is required by law to issue proposed regulations to carry out the provisions of Section 4205 of the Act.