Nutrition Facts Get Healthy Makeover
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday released proposed changes to the Nutrition Facts label that's affixed to all packaged foods sold in the U.S.
Among the changes are an adjustment to serving sizes - to reflect the actual consumption habits - and a clearer design with larger fonts for selected information. The redesigned label will be placed on more than 700,000 products.
“Our guiding principle here is very simple: that you as a parent and a consumer should be able to walk into your local grocery store, pick up an item off the shelf, and be able to tell whether it’s good for your family,” said First Lady Michelle Obama, who spearheaded the redesign efforts.
Other proposed changes include: listing the "added sugars" in a food product; adding a "dual column" format with information per serving and per package; requiring Vitamin D and potassium amounts on a ll products; reformatting the Daily Values for nutrients like sodium and fiber; removing the "Calories from Fat" information.
“To remain relevant, the FDA’s newly proposed Nutrition Facts label incorporates the latest in nutrition science as more has been learned about the connection between what we eat and the development of serious chronic diseases impacting millions of Americans," said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D.
The FDA is soliciting public comment for the next 90 days on the proposed changes.
