Monday, September 6, 2010

Food labeling: Old Law-Current Need

It is called the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act Of 2004. Now, that is a mouthful. But it’s responsible for some important changes in the labeling of food. You may have noticed phrases like, “Packaged in a facility that also packages peanuts or other nuts,” on labels. This is a direct result of the act and it’s been helpful for parents of children with everything from peanut allergy to milk allergy. But now, researchers have found there is a problem. Some parents and allergy sufferers are not heading the warnings. Apparently, some labels don’t get the same results. 91% of people with allergies who respond to the studies say they would never buy a product with the words “May contain,” or “May contain traces of,” on a label. But the number drops to 65%, if it says, "If packaged in a facility that also packages." My advice? I take them all seriously.

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