Analyzing Food for Nutrition Labeling and Hazardous Contaminants

Ike Jeon

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9780367841003
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000148404
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Analytic Chemistry
• Index: Technology & Engineering

This work provides up-to-date information on the various analytical procedures involved in both nutrition labelling and the identification and quantitation of hazardous chemicals in foods. It assesses the relative strengths of traditional and modern analysis techniques. The book covers all mandatory dietary components and many optional nutritients specified by the new labelling regulations of the Food and Drug Administration and the US Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service.

Part I. Analysis for Nutrition Labeling

1

Current Regulatory Status of Nutrition Labeling

IKE J. JEON

Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas

Introduction

The new nutrition-labeling regulations issued on January 6, 1993, by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) are the most sweeping changes for food labeling in U.S. history. These changes would mark the first extensive renovation of the food label since 1974, when FDA and FSIS established voluntary nutrition labeling and began requiring nutrition information on labels for products containing added nutrients or carrying nutrition claims. The status of the new nutrition labeling is mandatory in most cases, and food manufacturers must comply with most of FDA’s requirements by May 8, 1994, and with FSIS’s by July 6, 1994 (1). Because of an increasing consumer interest in food and nutrition and their relationship to health, both agencies have devoted considerable efforts since 1989 to change the labeling practices. However, the new regulations are direct results of the compliance mandated by the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) of 1990, although the law does not affect meat and poultry products. The goal of new nutrition labeling is to achieve uniform labeling on all foods across the states.

According to estimates given by both FDA and FSIS, about 90% of processed food will carry nutrition information (1,2). Among the exemptions are plain coffee and tea; some spices, flavorings, and other foods that contain insignificant amounts of nutrients; ready-to-eat food prepared primarily on site, such as deli and bakery items; restaurant food; bulk food that is not resold; infant formulas; and food produced by small businesses. As required under NLEA, FDA defines a small business as one with food sales of less than $50,000 a year or total sales of less than $500,000. FSIS defines a small business as one that employs 500 or fewer people and produces no more than a certain poundage of a single food product annually (100,000 pounds by July 1996). Foods in small packages (generally no larger than a package of Life Savers or meat and poultry products weighing less than a half ounce) do not require nutrition information on their labels unless they make a nutrition claim. However, FDA-regulated products must carry a telephone number or address that consumers can use to obtain required nutrition information. Nutrition information is voluntary for many raw foods: the 20 most frequently eaten raw fruits, vegetables, and fish, under FDA’s voluntary point-of-purchase nutrition program, and the 45 major cuts of meat and poultry, under USDA’s voluntary point-of-purchase program. Although voluntary, the programs for raw produce, meat, fish, and poultry carry strong incentives for retailers to participate. Guidelines state that if voluntary compliance is found to be insufficient, the agencies may move to make it mandatory.

Nutrition Labeling

Dietary Components

The new nutrition panel must feature a title, “Nutrition Facts,” which replaces “Nutrition Information Per Serving.” The mandatory and voluntary components and the order in which they must appear are as follows:

• Total calories
• Calories from fat
• Calories from saturated fat (voluntary)
• Total fat
• Saturated fat
• Stearic acid (voluntary)—on meat and poultry products only
• Polyunsaturated fat (voluntary)
• Monounsaturated fat (voluntary)
• Cholesterol
• Sodium
• Potassium (voluntary)
• Total carbohydrate
• Dietary fiber
• Soluble fiber (voluntary)
• Insoluble fiber (voluntary)
• Sugars
• Sugar alcohol (voluntary)
• Other carbohydrate (voluntary)
• Protein
• Vitamin A
• Percentage of vitamin A present as β-carotene (voluntary)
• Vitamin C
• Calcium
• Iron
• Other essential vitamins and minerals (voluntary)

If a claim is made about any of the optional components or if a food is fortified or enriched with any of them, nutrition information for these components then becomes mandatory. FDA states that only these mandatory and voluntary components are allowed on the nutrition panel. Single amino acids and maltodextrin, for example, may not appear as part of the “Nutrition Facts” on the label. Thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin are no longer required in the nutrition labeling because deficiencies of these nutrients are no longer considered by FDA to be of public health significance. However, they may be listed voluntarily. All requirements established for this part of nutrition labeling can be found in 21 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 101 or in 9 CFR Parts 317,320, and 381 (for meat and poultry products), both as revised (3,4).

Calories

The components total calories and calories from fat are mandatory but calories from saturated fat is optional, as indicated above. However, declaration of the calories from polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats is not allowed on the nutrition label. The regulation does not permit inclusion of calories from carbohydrate or from protein. Calories must be expressed to the nearest 5-calorie increment up to and including 50 calories and to the nearest 10-calorie increment above 50 calories. Products containing fewer than 5 calories may be labeled as zero calorie. In addition, energy content per serving also may be expressed in kilojoule units, added in parentheses immediately following the statement of the caloric content.

Total Fat

The FDA defines the total fat as total lipid fatty acids expressed as triglycerides. Therefore, the declaration of total fat must be expressed as the amount of triglyceride that would provide the analytically measured amount of total lipid fatty acids in the food. Because food composition data bases do not include glycerol in the declaration of fatty acids (i.e., values represent free fatty acids), the agency is not requiring that the amount of saturated fatty acids or other classes of fatty acids be expressed as triglycerides. The amounts of fat must be expressed to the nearest 0.5-g increment below 3 g and to the nearest 1-g increment above 3 g. If the serving contains less than 0.5 g, the fat content must be expressed as zero.

Fatty Acids

Saturated fat is defined as the sum of all fatty acids containing no double bonds. Label declaration of saturated fat content information is not required for products that contain less than 0.5 g of total fat in a serving if no claims are made about fat or cholesterol content and if “calories from saturated fat” is not declared. If a statement of the saturated fat content is not required and, as a result, not declared, the statement “Not a significant source of saturated fat” must be placed at the bottom of the table of nutrient values in the same type size. Saturated fat content must be indented and expressed as grams per serving to the nearest 0.5-g increment below 3 g and to the nearest 1-g increment above 3 g. If the serving contains less than 0.5 g, the saturated fat content must be expressed as zero.

Declaration of stearic acid content is allowed on a voluntary basis for meat and poultry products only. FSIS allows this term because stearic acid does not have the same serum cholesterol-raising effect as myristic, palmitic, and lauric acids. FSIS believes this may provide more factual information to the consumer.

Polyunsaturated fat is defined as cis,cis-methylene-interrupted polyunsaturated fatty acids and may be declared voluntarily. However, the listing becomes mandatory when monounsaturated fat is declared or when a claim is made on the label concerning fatty acids or cholesterol. The unit expression for polyunsaturated fat content is the same as for saturated fat.

Monounsaturated fat is defined as cis-mononunsaturated fatty acids and may be declared voluntarily. However, the listing becomes mandatory when polyunsaturated fat is declared or when a claim is made on the label about fatty acids or cholesterol. The unit expression for monounsaturated fat content is identical to those for saturated and polyunsaturated fat.

Trans fatty acids are not allowed to be declared on the label at this time. However, as more data concerning the action and safety of trans fatty acids become available, the FDA may reconsider its decision.

Cholesterol

Cholesterol cont...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Preface
• Table of Contents
• Contributors
• Part I. Analysis for Nutrition Labeling
• Part II. Analysis for Hazardous Contaminants
• Index