Regulatory Watch

Debate over trans fats continues

Several industry groups have requested more time to submit comments.

By Wayne Labs, Senior Contributing Technical Editor

Food manufacturers want more time to comment on FDA’s early November preliminary determination that partially hydrogenated oils, the primary dietary source of artificial trans fat in processed foods, are not “generally recognized as safe” for use in food. FDA’s preliminary determination is based on available scientific evidence, and the agency has requested stakeholder comments by January 7, 2014.

The Grocery Manufacturers Association has requested more time, given what it says is the complexity of the issue. In its initial statement, GMA said, “Since 2005, food manufacturers have voluntarily lowered the amounts of trans fats in their food products by over 73 percent.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) has introduced the Trans Fat Truth in Labeling Act of 2013, which would change the way trans fat content is accounted for on food labels. His legislation would require trans fat content to be reported on labels, even if it is less than 0.5 grams. Currently, content under that level can be reported as zero trans fat.

KEYWORDS: generally recognized as safe (GRAS) healthy foods

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Wayne Labs has more than 30 years of editorial experience in industrial automation. He served as senior technical editor for I&CS/Control Solutions magazine for 18 years where he covered software, control system hardware and sensors/transmitters. Labs ran his own consulting business and contributed feature articles to Electronic Design, Control, Control Design, Industrial Networking and Food Engineering magazines. Before joining Food Engineering, he served as a senior technical editor for Omega Engineering Inc. Labs also worked in wireless systems and served as a field engineer for GE’s Mobile Communications Division and as a systems engineer for Bucks County Emergency Services. In addition to writing technical feature articles, Wayne covers FE’s Engineering R&D section.