Ahead of this week’s vote by the US House of Representatives on the National Uniformity for Food Act in Washington, the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) has aired its views on the legislation and the “significant amount of misinformation about the bill”.
The GMA said in a statement that under the current regulatory system, each of the 50 states and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can require separate and conflicting food safety and warning information on packaged foods, fostering confusion among consumers.
The statement continued: “H.R. 4167 is a common-sense bill that would ensure that the FDA and the states work collaboratively to develop a single set of food safety and warning standards that will help consumers make educated decisions for themselves and their families.”
The GMA also responded to opponents of the bill, who say it is narrow and covers only food safety and warning information for packaged food, saying: “Any other state food laws are exempt, including those covering the sanitation of pecans and notices as to whether fish is fresh or frozen, to cite two of the more esoteric examples put forth by opponents of the bill.”
The GMA has represented branded food, beverage and consumer products companies around the world since 1908.
