The US FDA has imposed new rules that change the current construct of the Nutrition Facts Panel For Conventional Foods. Companies with less than 10mm in Annual revenue have until July of 2021 to comply. Businesses with greater that 10mm must comply by July of 2020.

Here is a summary of the changes:

Summary of the Major Provisions of the Regulatory Action in Question

The final rule revises the Nutrition Facts label by:

  • Removing the declaration of “Calories from fat” because current science supports a view that the type of fat is more relevant than overall total fat intake in increased risk of chronic diseases;
  • Requiring the declaration of the gram amount of “added sugars” in a serving of a product, establishing a Daily Reference Value (DRV), and requiring the percent Daily Value (DV) declaration for added sugars;
  • Changing “Sugars” to “Total Sugars” and requiring that “Includes `X’ g Added Sugars” be indented and declared directly below “Total Sugars” on the label;
  • Updating the list of vitamins and minerals of public health significance. For example, the final rule requires the declaration of vitamin D and potassium and permits, rather than requires, the declaration of vitamins A and C;
  • Updating certain reference values used in the declaration of percent DVs of nutrients on the Nutrition Facts and Supplement Facts labels;
  • Revising the format of the Nutrition Facts and Supplement Facts labels to increase the prominence of the term “Calories;”
  • Removing the requirement for the footnote table listing the reference values for certain nutrients for 2,000 and 2,500 calorie diets;
  • Requiring the maintenance of records to support the declarations of certain nutrients under specified circumstances. For example, because there are no analytical methods that can distinguish between dietary fiber (soluble and insoluble fiber) and nondigestible carbohydrates that do not meet the definition of dietary fiber; added and naturally occurring sugars or the various forms of vitamin E; or folate and folic acid, the final rule requires manufacturers to make and keep certain written records to verify the declarations of dietary fiber, added sugars, vitamin E, and folate and folic acid in the labeling of the food associated with such records. The final rule requires these records to be kept for at least 2 years after introduction or delivery for introduction of the food into interstate commerce. A similar requirement exists with respect to added sugars in foods subject to non-enzymatic browning and fermentation because there are no analytical methods that can determine the amount of added sugar in specific foods containing added sugars alone or in combination with naturally occurring sugars, where the added sugars are subject to non-enzymatic browning and fermentation. However, for manufacturers of such foods who are unable to reasonably approximate the amount of added sugars in a serving of food to which the records requirements apply, the final rule allows manufacturers to submit a petition to request an alternative means of compliance.