Temporary FDA policies food industry clients should know

The FDA altered food labeling guidelines amidst the pandemic. Here's what insureds need to know to remain compliant.

The FDA permitted manufacturers and businesses to make minor formulation changes to certain packaged food products and food labels to help offset disruptions or shortages of some ingredients during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo:  Daniel Acker/Bloomberg)

Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced temporary policies aimed at providing manufacturers and businesses with limited flexibility on food labeling requirements and formulation adjustments of products for human consumption during the pandemic. These policies were implemented to provide regulatory flexibility and to minimize the impact of supply chain disruptions on product availability associated with the pandemic. But will these changes also create safety and health issues for consumers? Are these policies likely to continue in this new year?

If you’re a broker with clients in the food industry, here’s what you need to know about the FDA policies, along with some of the key requirements highlighted in the administration’s guidance document.

About the temporary policies

To help offset disruptions or shortages of some ingredients during the COVID-19 pandemic, the FDA has permitted manufacturers and businesses to make appropriate minor formulation changes to certain packaged food products and food labels. And while these changes may cause a food label to be incorrect, the FDA maintains that these changes in no way pose a health or safety issue to consumers and won’t cause significant modifications in the final product.

So, what’s considered a minor formulation change? According to FDA guidelines, all changes should be consistent with the following six general factors:

The FDA guidance document also provides information regarding flexibilities already in food labeling regulations so that manufacturers/businesses understand that these options are readily available for use. An example is a flexibility to declare flavors, spices and certain food colors generically and, in limited cases, to use “and/or” in ingredient labeling. Other temporary flexibilities that the FDA has issued as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic address further the nutrition labeling on prepackaged foods, ingredient labeling on menus, labeling of shell eggs and safety guidelines on the distribution of eggs to retailers.

The new FDA temporary policies also will permit the vending machine industry to allow covered operators to forgo vending machine labeling requirements for foods that provide calorie information. However, the FDA encourages vending machine operators to continue to comply as closely as possible with existing vending machine labeling requirements.

Conclusion

The FDA policies will remain in effect for the duration of the pandemic. However, the agency recognizes that it may take some time after the pandemic is officially declared over for the food and agricultural industry to replenish supply chains.

David Fiske (dfiske@wwfi.com) is a senior vice president, and Lori Hunter (lhunter@wwfi.com) is an executive vice president at Worldwide Facilities, a national wholesale insurance broker, managing general agent and program underwriter. This article first appeared on Worldwide Facilities’ blog and is republished here with the authors’ consent. 

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