CSPI celebrates FDA front-of-package nutrition labeling proposal

Today, the Food and Drug Administration published a proposed rule to require new labels on food packages to help Americans select healthier foods and avoid diet-related disease. The policy requires that packaged foods bear labels prominently disclosing whether they are “High,” “Medium,” or “Low” in sodium, added sugars, and saturated fat, three nutrients that are overconsumed by Americans and linked to preventable chronic diseases. This long overdue proposal has potential to usher in healthier consumer purchases, incentivize companies to produce healthier products, and stem the rising tide of preventable conditions like type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

The labels, termed “Nutrition Info” labels by FDA, are elsewhere termed “traffic light” labels when the words High/Medium/Low are accompanied by the colors Red/Yellow/Green, but FDA’s proposed labels are black and white. Similar labeling policies have been adopted by more than a dozen countries across the Americas and beyond, although most of those policies only highlight products that are “High In” nutrients consumed in excess. Instead of mandatory labels designating products as high, medium, or low in specific nutrients, the food and beverage industry has pushed for voluntary “Facts Up Front” labels, which do not indicate if a product is high in a nutrient, have no effect on consumer purchases, and mainly served to drag out this process for more than a decade.

U.S. adults consume 50 percent more sodium, 40 percent more added sugars, and 30 percent more saturated fat per day than the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends. Numerous randomized trials and evaluations of front-of-package labeling policies from other countries show that these policies help consumers make healthier choices and cut back on these nutrients, which are linked to chronic disease when consumed in excess.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has long advocated for front-of-package nutrition labeling, starting with a Citizen Petition to FDA in 2006. CSPI, the Association of SNAP Nutrition Education Administrators, and the Association of State Public Health Nutritionists filed an updated petition in 2022 calling for mandatory, interpretive, nutrient-specific front-of-package nutrition labels of the very type proposed by FDA today. However, the petition noted that the scientific literature generally favors nutrient warnings (i.e., “High In” labels) over traffic light labels for reducing selection or purchasing of foods high in sodium, sugar, and saturated fat. Either, however, is a vast improvement on the status quo.

The incoming administration has the opportunity to finalize this important rulemaking and follow through on commitments to stand up to Big Food. When finalizing the policy, we hope FDA will consider the growing body of international evidence supporting the “High In”-style labels adopted by our neighbors to the North and South. We hope to see FDA continue to push forward with evidence-based public health protections, including mandatory front-of-package nutrition labeling.