Senate Passes Food Safety Bill

By Ellyn Ferguson, CQ Staff

The Senate passed a long-delayed comprehensive food safety bill by voice vote Sunday night, sending it back to the House to clear for the president’s signature. The action resurrected legislation some supporters had begun to write off as a casualty of a technical error and shifting partisan sentiments after the Nov. 2 elections.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid gave the legislation new life by stripping language of a bill (HR 2751) originally written to aid consumer recycling and inserting the text of the Senate-passed food safety bill (S 510).Reid, D-Nev., said the bill was an “extremely important” step in preventing food-borne illnesses that can disable or kill consumers.Reid said he had spoken with Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., about the House acting quickly on the bill.

The quick and easy passage came as something of a surprise after speculation for much of the weekend centered on the Democrats possibly adding the food safety legislation to a spending measure.“It’s not dead yet,” Majority Whip Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., author of the Senate food safety bill said Sunday afternoon. Sen. Michael B. Enzi of Wyoming, ranking Republican on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, also said efforts to keep the measure alive were continuing.Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn had said he would block any spending measure that included food safety, and Republicans have said they want a clean bill.

Putting the food safety legislation into a non-spending bill skirted those potential hurdles. Coburn, who had previously held up the food safety bill for months over objections to the cost and demands for a vote on an anti-earmark amendment, raised no objection to the unanimous consent agreement Sunday. The food safety measure — which would expand Food and Drug Administration regulatory authority and empower the agency to order mandatory recalls — enjoys broad bipartisan support in both chambers. The Senate passed its bill last month with 73 votes, and clearing it in the House appeared to be a formality. But the Senate bill included user fees that ran afoul of a constitutional requirement that revenue measures originate in the House.

Efforts to resolve the impasse by including it in legislation to fund the government through fiscal 2011 fell apart when Senate Republicans said they would only accept a short-term appropriations measure.

The House had passed a companion food safety bill in 2009. Rep. John D. Dingell, D-Mich., sponsor of the House bill, expressed frustration over the weekend that the legislation seemed trapped in a Senate procedural maze. “This bill has been laying over in the Senate for 17 months,” he said. “The result of doing nothing is millions of Americans getting sick, hundreds of thousands being hospitalized and thousands more dying every year. How many more are going to have to get sick, be hospitalized and die before the Senate takes action on a bill that passed overwhelmingly in the House and Senate with support of the industry and consumers?”
Reid said overhaul of food safety laws was long overdue and would reassure Americans that the food they eat is safe. “This is a common-sense issue with broad bipartisan support,” he said. “Tonight we unanimously passed a measure to improve on our current food safety system by giving the FDA the resources it needs to keep up with advances in food production and marketing, without unduly burdening farmers and food producers.”

Limiting Front-Of-Food Packaging Labels and the First Amendment

Timothy D. Lytton, Albany Law School,  Banning Front-of-Package Food Labels: First Amendment Constraints on Public Health Policy, in Public Health Nutrition.
 Abstract:

In recent months, the FDA has begun a crackdown on misleading nutrition and health claims on the front of food packages by issuing warning letters to manufacturers and promising to develop stricter regulatory standards. Leading nutrition policy experts Marion Nestle and David Ludwig have called for an even tougher approach: a ban on all nutrition and health claims on the front of food packages.

Nestle and Ludwig argue that most of these claims are scientifically unsound and misleading to consumers and that eliminating them would ‘aid educational efforts to encourage the public to eat whole or minimally processed foods and to read the ingredients list on processed foods’.

Nestle and Ludwig are right to raise concerns about consumer protection and public health when it comes to front-of-package food labels, but an outright ban on front-of-package nutrition and health claims would violate the First Amendment. As nutrition policy experts develop efforts to regulate front-of-package nutrition and health claims, they should be mindful of First Amendment constraints on government regulation of commercial speech.

CDC Reports 1 in 6 Get Sick from Foodborne Illnesses Each Year

New estimates more precise

About 48 million people (1 in 6 Americans) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die each year from foodborne diseases, according new estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The figures are the most accurate to date due to better data and methods used. The data are published Wednesday in two articles in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases.

The papers provide the most accurate picture yet of what foodborne pathogens are causing the most illness, as well as estimating the proportion of foodborne illness without a known cause. The reports are the first comprehensive estimates since 1999 and are CDC's first to estimate illnesses caused solely by foods eaten in the United States.

"We've made progress in better understanding the burden of foodborne illness and unfortunately, far too many people continue to get sick from the food they eat," said CDC Director Thomas Frieden, M.D, M.P.H. "These estimates provide valuable information to help CDC and its partners set priorities and further reduce illnesses from food."

CDC's new estimates are lower than in the 1999 report. The difference is largely the result of improvements in the quality and quantity of the data used and new methods used to estimate foodborne-disease.

For example, it is now known that most norovirus is not spread by the foodborne route, which has reduced the estimate of foodborne norovirus from 9.2 to approximately 5.5 million cases per year. Because of data and method improvements, the 1999 and current estimates cannot be compared to measure trends.

CDC's FoodNet surveillance system data, which tracks trends among common foodborne pathogens, has documented a decrease of 20 percent in illnesses from key pathogens during the past 10 years. However, these FoodNet pathogens make up only a small proportion of the illnesses included in the new estimates.
Of the total estimate of 48 million illnesses annually, CDC estimates that 9.4 million illnesses are due to 31 known foodborne pathogens. The remaining 38 million illnesses result from unspecified agents, which include known agents without enough data to make specific estimates, agents not yet recognized as causing foodborne illness, and agents not yet discovered. In both the 1999 and current estimates, unspecified agents were responsible for roughly 80 percent of estimated illnesses.

"Foodborne illnesses and deaths are preventable, and as such, are unacceptable," said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D. "We must, and can, do better by intensifying our efforts to implement measures that are prevention-oriented and science-based. We are moving down this path as quickly as possible under current authorities but eagerly await passage of new food safety legislation that would provide us with new and long overdue tools to further modernize our food safety program."

Among the additional findings for foodborne illness due to known pathogens:

·       Salmonella was the leading cause of estimated hospitalizations and deaths, responsible for about 28 percent of deaths and 35 percent of hospitalizations due to known pathogens transmitted by food.
·       About 90 percent of estimated illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths were due to seven pathogens: Salmonella, norovirus, Campylobacter, Toxoplasma, E.coli O157, Listeria and Clostridium perfringens.
·       Nearly 60 percent of estimated illnesses, but a much smaller proportion of severe illness, was caused by norovirus.

"People expect food to nourish them, not to harm them. So we need to intensify efforts to decrease the number of illnesses and deaths due to foodborne diseases," said Christopher Braden, M.D., director of CDC's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases. "We now know more than ever what pathogens are causing the most harm, and we will continue our work to help protect people from these illnesses. Much that remains unknown about how and why people get sick and we are committed to learning more in the future."

CDC continues to encourage consumers to take an active role in preventing foodborne infection by following safe food-handling and preparation tips of separating meats and produce while preparing foods, cooking meat and poultry to the right temperatures, promptly chilling leftovers, and avoiding unpasteurized milk and cheese and raw oysters.

The full report is available online at http://www.cdc.gov/eid.
For more detailed information on the estimates and methods, please visit http://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden.
To learn more about foodborne illness trends, visit the FoodNet site at http://www.cdc.gov/FoodNet/.
To learn about how to prevent foodborne illness, visit http://www.foodsafety.gov.

Consumer Group Sues McDonald's Over Happy Meal Toys

Dear Child In The Back Seat:

Your days of whining for the Strawberry Shortcake Happy Meal toy you saw on TV may be numbered. At least in California.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest filed a lawsuit today against McDonald's in state court in California to stop the company from advertising toys with Happy Meals. It's no sure thing that the consumer group will get its way in court, of course, but the lawsuit ups the pressure on the fast-food chain over the combination of food and toys that appeal to kids. McDonald's defends the meals.

 The group filed the class action suit on behalf of parents, including plaintiff Monet Parham, a 41-year-old mother of two from Sacramento who says she's fed up with the pestering.

"Happy meals are among the those things frequently requested, and the first thing they ask me to do is open the toy," Parham said in a press conference today. "I'm really concerned about the health of my children, and I don't think its OK to entice children to get Happy Meals with a toy," she added. McDonald's didn't immediately return requests for comment about the lawsuit, although it has known that CSPI intended to file a suit since June.

The lawsuit asserts that under California's consumer protection laws, McDonald's toy advertising is deceptive. It targets children under 8 years old who don't have the ability to understand advertising. "Little kids don't know the difference between a program and a commercial," says CSPI's Executive Director Michael Jacobson. The Institute of Medicine and the Supreme Court have said as much.

But the real concern for the group, and for parents, CSPI says, is that McDonald's advertising makes kids beg their parents to buy food that's high in calories, sugar, fat and salt, which contributes to obesity.

Marketing to kids is an end-run around parental control," says Stephen Gardner, CSPI's director of litigation.But CSPI is not asking for damages, just for McDonald's to stop advertising toys. "This is about the change, not the money," Gardner says.

For its part, McDonald's has added healthier items to its menu in recent years, like apple slices, low-fat milk. But french fries still go into Happy Meals more than 90 percent of the time, Jacobson notes. McDonald's and other fast food companies spend over half a billion dollars a year on advertising and marketing kids meals — most of it on toys.

Separately, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors overrode a mayoral veto last month to push ahead with an ordinance that would effectively ban toys from most Happy Meals starting in December 2011.

UPDATE: 12:48pm. McDonald's spokesperson Bridget Coffing issued the following statement. It addresses neither toys nor advertising:

We are proud of our Happy Meals and intend to vigorously defend our brand, our reputation and our food.

We stand on our 30 year track record of providing a fun experience for kids and families at McDonald’s.

We listen to our customers, and parents consistently tell us they approve of our Happy Meals.

We are confident that parents understand and appreciate that Happy Meals are a fun treat, with quality, right-sized food choices for their children that can fit into a balanced diet.

Blog

Margaret Hamburg on Food, Health, and Medicine : The New Yorker

Currents: Margaret Hamburg on Food, Health, and Medicine : The New Yorker, Dec. 6, 2010

Michael Specter talks with Margaret Hamburg, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, about the job of regulating one-third of the economy, truth in labelling and packaging, and the potential benefits and dangers of genomics.

Food Traceability

This is the fifth and final post in a series of articles on traceability. Written by Springwise, and supported by IBM. Check out our previous posts on informing consumers about child labour, milk tracking by a Swedish dairy, a registration service for product recalls and supermarkets offering increased food traceability, or read more about building a smarter planet.
 
For today's post, we've collected examples of ten food brands that give consumers access to information on the origins of their products' ingredients. While these efforts are baby steps toward true traceability — and critics are somewhat justified in their assertion that images of verdant fields and smiling farmers are little more than marketing tools — smart brands are nonetheless moving in the direction of increased transparency.

1. Stone-Buhr — Buyers of Stone-Buhr's All Purpose Flour can type in a lot code on the company's website to see which family farms grew the grain. Stone-Buhr's emphasis is on spotlighting the family-owned farms in the Northwest who supply it with certified sustainable wheat. Website: www.findthefarmer.com
 
2. Coca-Cola — In the UK, Coca-Cola launched a web app that allows consumers to trace the origin of their can or bottle of Coke. Instead of divulging the sources of ingredients, Coca-Cola focuses on manufacturing locations, distribution and environmental impact. It estimates the carbon footprint of a drink, and shows the address of the factory it was made in.
Website: www.coca-cola.co.uk/environment/trace-your-coke.html
 
3. Askinosie — Missouri-based chocolate maker Askinosie invites customers to enter a 'Choc-O-Lot' number to view the chocolate's geographical origin, as well as information about the farmers who grew the cocoa beans. The tool highlights the company's commitment both to quality and to a fair deal for farmers. Askinosie buys directly from farmers in Mexico, Phillipines, Tanzania and Ecuador, and doesn't purchase beans until they've met the farmers in person.
Website: www.askinosie.com

4. Dole Organic — Dole lets consumers “travel to the origin of each organic product”. By typing in a fruit sticker's three-digit code on Dole Organic's website, customers can find the story behind their banana or pineapple. Each farm's section on the website includes background info, shows photos of the crops and workers and tells consumers more about the origin of Dole's organic products.
Website: www.doleorganic.com
 
5. Chippindale Foods — Chippindale Foods supplies free range eggs to supermarkets in northern England. The company created wheresyoursfrom.com to allow consumers to find out where their eggs were laid. After entering the code printed on an egg carton, people can view pictures of 'their' farmer and hens, and read a history of the farm.
Website: www.wheresyoursfrom.com
 
6. Frito-Lay — Another big brand that's embracing traceability is Frito-Lay. Its Chip Tracker lets consumers trace where a particular bag of chips was made, by entering their ZIP code along with the first three digits of the bag's product code. The site returns a specific location along with its annual output. An associated map, meanwhile, highlights both growing and production facilities.
Website: www.fritolay.com/lays/chip-tracker.html
 
7. Fresh Express — A subsidiary of Chiquita Brands and purveyor of washed and packaged salad greens, Fresh Express allows consumers to find the origin of their salad through a 'Leaf Locator' on the company's website. Fresh Express sources leafy greens from five US states and Mexico, and includes details on a location's climate, growing season and agricultural history.
Website: www.freshexpress.com
 
8. Crop to Cup — Through Crop to Cup's website, consumers can trace their coffee back to the farmers who produced it. Drinkers of Uganda Bugisu coffee, for example, can read a profile of Peter Guimuii, who is married, has six children and approximately 5,000 coffee trees. The detailed personal information provided underscores Crop to Cup's goal of improving farmers' livelihoods.
Website: www.croptocup.com
 
9. Domino's Pizza — Pizza lovers don't enter product codes on 'Behind the Pizza', which was created by Domino's to give consumers more information on how their pizza ingredients are made. While the site does show manufacturing plants and farms it works with, the focus here is more on edutainment than targeted transparency.
Website: more.dominos.com/behindthepizza
 
10. Iglo — First featured on Springwise in 2008, 'Woher kommt Ihr Spinat' is still going strong. Created by Iglo, a European market leader in the frozen foods segment, the program gives consumers access to details on where their spinach came from. Offsetting its Big Brand reputation, Iglo displays pictures of the spinach grower and his or her family, alongside information about the farm.
Website: www.iglo.de

FDA Releases First Estimate on Antibiotics in Ag

By Helena Bottemiller  Dec 13, 2010 Food Safety News 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the first time released an estimate on the amount of antibiotics sold for use in domestic food animal production, a move that comes as the agency aims to curb the growth in antibiotic resistance.

The agency estimates that, in 2009, there were just shy of 29 million pounds sold for use in animal agriculture.

"That's a lot," as Maryn McKenna, infectious disease journalist and author of "Superbug," put it on her blog for Wired magazine last week. But, Mckenna notes, it's not necessarily more or less than was expected, in part because the current estimates vary so wildly.

Though the debate over routinely feeding antibiotics to food animals has grown louder--and has been featured more in the mainstream media--the report was released with no fanfare and has been widely ignored by most news organizations.

McKenna broke the news on her blog, aptly titled 'Superbug.'

"The reason why antibiotic use on farms is a concern," says McKenna. "[I]s because such use stimulates the emergence of drug-resistant organisms that move off the farm in animals, in groundwater, in dust, on the wind and in the systems and on the clothes of those who work there, and makes new resistance factors available to be swapped among bacteria."

Out of these concerns--which have been raised by a variety of consumer, science, and public health groups--leadership at FDA has indicated that the agency will take a serious look at ways to curb resistance by looking at the overuse of antibiotics--in both animal agriculture and human medicine.

"Because more use of antimicrobials is, in general, associated with greater levels of resistance, these data will supplement the FDA's ongoing activities in antimicrobial resistance prevention," the FDA reported.  "It also reinforces a recent agency draft guidance on the judicious use of certain antimicrobials in food-producing animals."

The agency released a draft guidance on judicious use in animal agriculture in June "intended to help reduce the development of resistance to medically important antimicrobial drugs" that are still used widely in food animal production to ward off disease and promote growth.

The document states that the overall weight of evidence supports "the conclusion that using medically important antimicrobial drugs for production or growth enhancing purposes (i.e., non-therapeutic or subtherapeutic uses) in food-producing animals is not in the interest of protecting and promoting the public health."

The animal health industry has long maintained that antibiotics are a critical tool for animal health and that any move to limit use should be based on science.

"For more than 40 years, antibiotics approved by the Food and Drug Administration have been used to treat sick animals, prevent illness and maintain the health of animals," the Animal Health Institute, a veterinary industry group, states on its website.  "Livestock and poultry producers rely on these products so they can provide U.S. consumers with the safest food possible."

President Obama Signs Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 Into Law

The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release

First Lady Michelle Obama, Administration Officials and Let’s Move! Advocates Reaffirm Commitment to Raise a Healthier Generation of Kids

Read the fact sheet (pdf)

See a sample school lunch menu (pdf)

“Today is a great day for kids throughout our country as they will soon have healthier, and more nutritious food in their schools. As we continue to focus on the twin issues of childhood obesity and hunger, we will increase access to good, quality meals in school cafeterias so the nutritional needs of our youngsters are better met. The President and First Lady have advocated strongly for passing the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, and, this bill, along with the resources and the powers provided under it, are going to allow USDA to be much more effective and aggressive in responding to obesity and hunger challenges for America’s kids.”

- U.S. Secretary Of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
“The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act is a significant step forward in our effort to help America's children thrive and grow to be healthy adults. Thanks to the dedication of this Congress and First Lady Michelle Obama, more kids will have access to healthy, balanced, nutritious school lunches. By increasing the number of students eligible to enroll in school meal programs and improving the quality of food served, this legislation simultaneously tackles both hunger and the obesity levels currently affecting too many communities across this nation.”

-U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius
"The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act makes the most significant investment in the National School Lunch program in more than 30 years. I look forward to continuing to work with the First Lady and Secretary Vilsack to combat our national childhood obesity epidemic and increase students access to the nutritional food they need to help them learn.”
- U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
“As Vice Chair of the Partnership for a Healthier America, I join President Obama and the First Lady in celebrating the signing of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.  This bi-partisan legislation will significantly enhance the quality of food for our children for generations to come and is a dramatic step forward in reducing childhood obesity. As a physician, I know smart nutrition leads to healthy and productive lives. With 36.5% of our children in Tennessee being overweight, this act goes a long way in ensuring that kids in Tennessee and around the country will have the healthy nutrition they deserve.”

- U.S. Senator Bill Frist (R-TN)
“Childhood and adult obesity are national problems and growing epidemics, but the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act will help end this epidemic by improving the quality of food served to our children in schools across the nation. Here in Newark, we are defeating childhood and adult obesity, by partnering with organizations and community leaders to create local-based change that empowers families, neighborhoods and youth to embrace a healthier lifestyle.  I applaud First Lady Michelle Obama’s commitment to the children of our city and across the country.”
-  Mayor Cory A. Booker of Newark, New Jersey
“On behalf of Mission: Readiness and over 100 retired generals and admirals who support child nutrition legislation as a matter of national security, we are very pleased that the nation has taken this important step in addressing the nation’s obesity epidemic. Being overweight or obese is the No. 1 medical reason why young men and women are unable to join the military. Research shows that up to 40 percent of what children consume every day takes place during school hours and that 80 percent of children who were overweight between the ages of 10 to 15 were obese by age 25. The final bill includes provisions that can get junk food out of schools, nourish more kids who need healthful meals and motivate them and their parents to adopt healthful eating and exercise habits.  Military concerns about the fitness of American children are not new. When the National School Lunch Act was first passed in 1946, it was seen as a matter of national security. At the time many military leaders recognized that poor nutrition was a significant factor reducing the pool of qualified candidates for service. Our country is facing another serious health crisis. Obesity rates threaten the overall health of America and the future strength of our military. We must act, as we did after World War II, to ensure that our children can one day defend our country, if need be.”

-Retired Army Generals John M. Shalikashvili and Hugh Shelton, Former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
“Congratulations to First Lady Michelle Obama, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and to the bi-partisan support in the Congress to pass the Healthy, Hunger Free Children Act.  By passing a bill that addresses the nutritional quality of school lunches, an important step is being taken to give children choices that will make them healthier and more productive.”

-Mike Huckabee, Governor of Arkansas 1996-2007

“The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act makes significant progress toward ending child hunger and obesity by expanding access to federal child nutrition programs and improving the nutritional value they provide. In addition to reauthorizing federal child nutrition programs, the act will help address childhood obesity by reducing the fat and calorie content of school meals. Reversing the childhood obesity epidemic in a single generation – as First Lady Michelle Obama has called upon our nation to do – won’t be easy. It will require a long-term, sustained commitment to attacking this issue across multiple fronts. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act makes great strides toward eliminating this threat to our children's health.”
- O. Marion Burton, MD, FAAP, President, American Academy of Pediatrics
“The historic signing of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act helps schools become part of the solution to the childhood obesity epidemic. It is a victory for American parents working to make sure their kids grow up healthy, and for schools wanting to provide students with more nutritious meals and a healthier environment. With the implementation of this law, our nation's kids will be less likely to grow up with early risk factors for heart disease and stroke.”

-Nancy Brown, Chief Executive Officer, American Heart Association
“Today marks a major step forward in efforts to prevent both childhood obesity and hunger among our nation’s children. The signing of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act into law is a long-awaited victory for the 31 million students who participate in federal school meal programs. By giving the USDA the authority to update standards for all foods and beverages in schools, this new law says unhealthy foods have no place in our nation’s schools. And schools finally will have more resources to serve nutritious and appealing meals.”

- Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A., President and CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

“Getting junk food out of schools has been ten years in the making. This bill is a historic step toward reducing childhood obesity and helping parents' feed their children better. It's the result of the hard work of many, but would not have passed without this Administration. The President's leadership and First Lady's tireless advocacy brought the child nutrition bill back to life a number of times as it made its way through Congress.”

-Margo G. Wootan, Director of Nutrition Policy, Center for Science in the Public Interest
“The School Nutrition Association joins families nationwide in thanking President Obama, the First Lady and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack for their sustained efforts to pass child nutrition reauthorization and expand children’s access to healthy school meals.  The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act recognizes the importance of school meals to the health and academic success of America’s children and gives school nutrition programs critical resources to bring more fresh produce, whole grains and low-fat dairy products into cafeterias.  School nutrition professionals look forward to working with the Administration, parents, principals and community leaders to meet new nutrition standards for school meals and explore new avenues for promoting healthy lifestyles for our children.”

- Nancy Rice, M.Ed., RD, LD, SNS, President, School Nutrition Association (SNA)
“The provisions of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act will support efforts already underway in Dallas.  The additional funding will help with continuing to improve our school meals and creating a healthier school environment.  We appreciate the fact that child nutrition has been placed as a high priority by the First Lady and the President. New USDA meal patterns and professional standards will assure improved quality child nutrition programs for our children which in turn will support student academic performance in the classroom.”

-Dora Rivas, MS, RD, SNS, Executive Director, Food & Child Nutrition Services, Dallas Independent School District
“Our kids aren’t hungry because we lack food or because of a lack of food and nutrition programs. They are hungry because they lack access to programs that provide the nutritious food they need to grow and thrive. I would like to thank the President and First Lady for making Child Nutrition a top priority. Through their leadership and commitment we now have the first significant change in school meals in thirty years. This legislation is historic and will allow me to continue to offer more real foods to the kids in our schools.”
- Timothy Cipriano, Executive Director of Food Services, New Haven Public Schools
“The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act signals a deep commitment to our nation's children and provides increased access to the food and nutrition programs that often go underutilized. Our kids aren't hungry because we lack food or because of a lack of food and nutrition programs. They are hungry because they lack access to the nutritious food they need to grow and thrive.  The First Lady’s persistence made all the difference between this legislation’s good intentions and its becoming the law of the land.”

-Bill Shore, Founder and Executive Director, Share Our Strength
“This bill is an acknowledgement that in a nation as bountiful as ours, no child should worry about when their next meal will be. We are grateful for the hard work of our coalition partners, the White House, and Congress.” 

-Rabbi Steve Gutow, President, Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Co-Chair Fighting Poverty with Faith
"This bill is an exciting victory for hungry children. After a largely gridlocked year, passage of this bill is a positive sign that Congress can work together in the best interests of Americans."

-Rev. Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
“This critical legislation ensures that more of our nation’s children have access to healthy nutritious food and reaffirms our commitment as a nation to addressing the problem of childhood hunger.  It is unacceptable that one in four children in poverty in America are hungry. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 is an essential step in helping the 43.6 million American families who struggle every day to feed their children.”
- Father Larry Snyder, President, Catholic Charities USA, Co-chair Fighting Poverty with Faith
“Today's signing of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act is something to celebrate, whether you are one of the 31 million schoolchildren who stand to benefit from it, or their parents, or America’s farmers. The bill establishes sensible nutrition standards for the food sold in school that will help push the junk food out of the building and make it easier for kids to have access to a nutritious meal or snack in school.  The increase in funding for school lunch may be modest, yet it is also the first such increase in sixty years—a long-overdue recognition of the importance of the school lunch program in assuring the health of our children. The bill also recognizes the value of linking farms directly to schools as a way to get the freshest, tastiest vegetables and fruits into the cafeteria—a boon to both children and local farmers. The bill represents an important achievement for the First Lady’s Let’s Move! campaign, and the First Lady and her team are to be congratulated. It is also a victory for all the grass roots organizations and activists who work so hard to improve access to healthy food for everyone. There is still much to be done, but what has happened today marks a significant step forward, toward a food system that puts the health of our children first.” 
–Michael Pollan, Author and Journalism Professor
“The way we feed our children today will dictate the country we have tomorrow. This was much more than a bipartisan effort. With the First Lady’s leadership, parents, teachers, child advocates and chefs all helped to pass a bill that will provide a children with what should be a fundamental right: the right to be fed in a healthy way. While I am happy we were able to squeeze a few more dollars for school lunch programs, I think we can do better. We need to band together on these issues to make sure we don’t shortchange our kids.”

- José Andrés, Principal, Think Food Group
“From the First Lady’s Chefs Move to Schools initiative to the President’s Childhood Nutrition bill, the Obama Administration has instigated a much-needed attitude change towards proper nutrition. As a chef and as a mother of four, I understand the importance of providing my own children with wholesome meals and firmly believe that all of our nation’s children should be afforded the same opportunity to grow up healthy which is why this legislation is so important.”
-Cat Cora, Founder, “Chefs for Humanity” and UNICEF spokesperson
“I am pleased to support President and Mrs. Obama and the efforts of their Administration in securing healthier nutrition for this nation's children. We still have much work to do to guarantee that all Americans have access to adequate, high-quality food, but the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act is an important first step in that direction."

-Tom Colicchio, Chef/Restaurateur and Host of Top Chef

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Stefaan G. Verhulst
Chief of Research
Markle Foundation
10 Rockefeller Plaza, Floor 16
New York, NY 10020-1903
Tel. 212 713 7630
Cell 646 573 1361
http://www.markle.org

McDonald's chief attacks children's meal 'food police'

By Greg Farrell and Hal Weitzman in Oak Brook, Financial Times Dec 13, 2010

The chief executive of McDonald’s has described critics of the company who have tried to curtail the sale of Happy Meals aimed at children as “food police” and accused them of undermining parents in making decisions for their families.  In an interview with the Financial Times, Jim Skinner responded to last month’s vote by the San Francisco board of supervisors to forbid restaurants from offering toys with meals unless the food complied with limits on calories, sodium, sugar and fat.

 “We’ll continue to sell Happy Meals,” said Mr Skinner, in the face of a ban that does not become effective until December 2011. The new rule “really takes personal choice away from families who are more than capable of making their own decisions”. 

Mr Skinner’s message was aimed beyond San Francisco, at the growing legion of “food police” who blame McDonald’s for contributing to an epidemic of obesity in the US and other developed nations. “We’ve seen many years of someone trying to dictate behaviour through legislation,” he said. “Our Happy Meals have been supported by parents since the 1970s. The nutrition of Happy Meals, which include apples, meets FDA guidelines. We sell choices on the menu that make our customers feel better about their lifestyle.” In the past 20 years, McDonald’s has moved beyond hamburgers and Chicken McNuggets to offer healthier options ranging from salads and wraps to fruit-based smoothies.

However, as the world’s largest fast-food restaurant chain with 32,000 stores in 117 countries, McDonald’s remains synonymous with junk food in the eyes of many, in the way that Altria became a proxy for the tobacco industry.

McDonald’s thus often finds itself in the crosshairs of regulators and activists who portray it as everything from the root cause of the US obesity epidemic to the primary culprit behind the problems associated with globalisation. The company might win some battles over Happy Meals, but the larger direction of the “healthy food” war is not in its favour, said Eric Dezenhall, a communications consultant. 

“Even though I think their approach to pushback is a good one, in the long run, it’s hard to fight what is really a cultural movement,” he said. “As with cigarettes or Humvees, that never-ending drumbeat takes a long-term toll that will force a company to be more nimble about its product offerings, which they are doing.” 

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Marion Nestle: What should doctors tell patients about nutrition?

“The November issue of San Francisco Medicine is devoted to Food for Thought: Practical Nutrition for Physicians (the entire issue is online).

It’s got a great collection of short articles, if I may say so myself.  A throwback to the days when I taught nutrition at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine, my contribution, the first one, is called “Doctor’s Orders: What Should Doctors Tell Patients About Nutrition?”
I am a realist. I am well aware of the fact of time constraints, and my list of suggestions for what doctors should tell patients about diet and health is necessarily short. Fortunately, it doesn’t take long to tell patients that what they eat matters to their health. It takes only a minute to explain that healthy eating simply means attending to food variety, minimal processing, and moderation.

This collection is worth a read.  For example:
·       David Wallinga: An Unhealthy Food System: Suggestions for Physician Advocacy
·       Brian Raymond: Taking Action: A Health Sector Guide to Food System and Agricultural Policy
·       Kelly Brownell: How the Food Industry Drives Us to Eat
·       Narsai David: Eating Sensibly: Using Common Sense and Moderation
·       Shannon Udovic-Constant, MD, and Steve Heilig: Health Policy Perspective: Sugar Politics Versus Health”

URL: http://www.foodpolitics.com/2010/12/what-should-doctors-tell-patients-about-nutrition/

Food Safety Language Tacked to CR to Answer Constitutional Questions

By Ellyn Ferguson, CQ Staff

A Senate food safety bill that stalled in the House after running afoul of a constitutional requirement was included in the fiscal 2011 spending bill the House passed Wednesday.

House leaders said they could not take up the Senate-passed food safety measure (S 510) on its own because the Constitution requires that bills to raise revenue originate in the House. The Senate bill includes permitting, inspection and registration fees. The continuing resolution offered a vehicle to return the measure to the Senate.

“We view this as a welcome development and hope this will help get the food safety bill passed,” said Chris Waldrop, the Consumer Federation of America’s food policy director.

During House debate, the top Republican on the Energy and Commerce Committee, Joe L. Barton of Texas, said the food safety bill should go to conference to reconcile differences between the Senate version and the House-passed companion (HR 2749). Barton supported the House bill, but dislikes some provisions of the Senate version.

But the House bill’s sponsor, John D. Dingell, D-Mich., said the Senate bill did not drastically diverge from what the House had passed, and he urged colleagues to pass the measure.

“We’ll get it back here and we’ll take care of it,” said Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. He added that a Senate omnibus spending bill would also include the food safety language.

Overall, the bill would strengthen Food and Drug Administration oversight and inspections of food safety and give the agency the power to order mandatory recalls.

In addition to food safety, the House spending measure (HR 3082) would set discretionary spending for the Agriculture Department, FDA and related agencies at $22.6 billion, $724 million below the fiscal 2010 level. The bill would provide the FDA with more funding to increase inspections of food, medical devices and drugs, and would boost funding for nutrition assistance programs and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which assumes new authority to regulate over-the-counter derivatives.

CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS – AGRICULTURE
Dec. 8, 2010 – 2:25 p.m.

More Food Products Could Claim Heart Benefits Under New FDA Proposal

By:  Rebecca Adams, CQ HealthBeat Dec 7, 2010 5:33pm

Manufacturers of foods containing a plant-based compound with similar characteristics to cholesterol would be able to claim that their products reduce the risk of heart disease under a proposed rule the FDA plans to publish on Wednesday.

Multinational giant Unilever, the maker of the Becel/Flora brand of butter-flavored spread and yogurt drinks, stands to be one of the major beneficiaries of this new FDA policy.

Since September 2000, the FDA has allowed companies to claim that some products made with phytosterols, also known as plant sterols, can reduce cholesterol and heart disease risks if a full day’s dose is taken in twice-a-day servings.

At that time, the agency approved the claim for products such as vegetable oil spreads and salad dressings. The new proposal would expand that in several ways, allowing a much broader range of products — potentially including drinks, meat and chocolate — to bear a heart-healthy label.

Plant sterols are somewhat similar chemically to cholesterol. But instead of increasing cholesterol levels in blood, they compete with food-based cholesterol that goes into the intestine and is absorbed into the bloodstream. Studies show that plant sterols can reduce that absorption of dietary cholesterol.

In May 2006, Unilever asked the FDA to update its policy by allowing products that have a full dose in a single serving, rather than two servings, to make the heart-friendly claim. After conducting a review of the scientific literature, the agency plans to grant Unilever’s wish as part of the proposed rule.

Beyond that, the Unilever request prompted the agency to reevaluate its entire thinking on products containing plant sterols and the types of health claims that their manufacturers should be able to make. As a result, the agency is proposing to make nine changes that will allow many more companies to claim that the presence of phytosterols means that their foods can reduce cardiovascular disease risks.

The proposal updates rules related to the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 (PL 101-535), which says that a food is misbranded if it bears a claim that characterizes the relationship of a nutrient to a disease or health-related condition unless the claim is based on significant scientific agreement.

The agency will collect comments for 75 days before finalizing the proposal. But it said it would enforce the prior regulation “on a case-by-case basis when a health claim regarding phytosterols is made in a manner that is consistent with the proposed rule” until the proposal is finalized.

• FDA Proposed Rule (pdf)

• Unilever request (pdf)

Rebecca Adams can be reached at radams@cq.com.

HHS announces the nation's new health promotion and disease prevention agenda

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, December 2, 2010

Contact: OASH Press Office (202) 205-0143

HHS announces the nation’s new health promotion and disease prevention agenda

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today unveiled Healthy People 2020, the nation’s new 10-year goals and objectives for health promotion and disease prevention, and “myHealthyPeople,” a new challenge for technology application developers. 

For the past 30 years, Healthy People has been committed to improving the quality of our Nation’s health by producing a framework for public health prevention priorities and actions.

“The launch of Healthy People 2020 comes at a critical time,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.  “Our challenge and opportunity is to avoid preventable diseases from occurring in the first place.”

Chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes, are responsible for seven out of every 10 deaths among Americans each year and account for 75 percent of the nation’s health spending.  Many of the risk factors that contribute to the development of these diseases are preventable.

“Too many people are not reaching their full potential for health because of preventable conditions,” said Assistant Secretary for Health Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H.  “Healthy People is the nation’s roadmap and compass for better health, providing our society a vision for improving both the quantity and quality of life for all Americans.”

The Healthy People initiative is grounded in the principle that setting national objectives and monitoring progress can motivate action, and indeed, in just the last decade, preliminary analyses indicate that the country has either progressed toward or met 71 percent of its Healthy People targets. 

Healthy People 2020 is the product of an extensive stakeholder feedback process that is unparalleled in government and health. It integrates input from public health and prevention experts, a wide range of federal, state and local government officials, a consortium of more than 2,000 organizations, and perhaps most importantly, the public. More than 8,000 comments were considered in drafting a comprehensive set of Healthy People 2020 objectives. Based on this input, a number of new topic areas are included in the new initiative, including:

• Adolescent Health
• Blood Disorders and Blood Safety
• Dementias, including Alzheimer’s Disease
• Early and Middle Childhood
• Genomics
• Global Health
• Health-Related Quality of Life and Well-Being
• Healthcare-Associated Infections
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Health
• Older Adults
• Preparedness
• Sleep Health
• Social Determinants of Health

Healthy People is also issuing a special challenge to encourage developers to create easy-to-use applications for professionals who are working with the new national health objectives and state- and community-level health data.

“This milestone in disease prevention and health promotion creates an opportunity to leverage information technology to make Healthy People come alive for all Americans in their communities and workplaces,” said Chief Technology Officer Todd Park. “The ‘myHealthyPeople’ apps challenge will help spur innovative approaches to helping communities track their progress using Healthy People objectives and targets as well as develop an agenda for health improvement.”

HHS is also launching a newly redesigned Healthy People Web site that allows users to tailor information to their needs and explore evidence-based resources for implementation. 

The Web site is located at:  www.healthypeople.gov. 

For more information about myHealthyPeople, go to www.challenge.gov/

Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.

Last revised: December 02, 2010