FDA announces delay of 'healthy' labeling rule

In a notice published yesterday in the Federal Register, the Food and Drug Administration announced it would be moving the effective date of the final rule updating the definition of "Healthy" from February to April 2025.

The updated definition of "healthy" is a significant improvement to food labeling, as it will prevent foods that are high in added sugars from being labeled as "healthy," and allow the term on foods high in healthy fats like nuts, seeds, salmon, and olive oil, which were previously unfairly excluded from using the term.

The rule is a market-based reform that is voluntary and arms people with useful, accurate information, a stated goal for Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Today's move will not change the date that companies must comply, but it could signal that the Secretary may have an interest in re-opening the regulation to change the definition, a move that would likely delay implementation of the rule.

The "healthy" rule also would apply only to products that include the claim "healthy" in their labels, a tiny fraction of the food supply. Rather than re-open this rulemaking, Secretary Kennedy would have a greater impact if he moved forward to implement the rule on front-of-package nutrition labeling proposed by the FDA in January, which requires that packaged foods bear labels prominently disclosing whether they are “High,” “Medium,” or “Low” in sodium, added sugars, and saturated fat.