On October 8, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law another first-of-its-kind, California state-law attempt at promoting healthier nutrition. Continue Reading California Continues to Lead the Way In “Healthy” Food Regulation
Navigating the Legal Soup: A New “Short-Form” Recipe for Prop 65 Warnings on Food and Beverages
Until this year, food companies—often the target of Proposition 65 enforcement actions—have been limited to specific “full-length” language for Prop 65 warnings, without explicit guidance regarding whether short-form warnings could be used as a safe harbor warning for food products and non-alcoholic beverages. Prior to the implementation of amended regulations this year, Prop 65 regulations required the following full-length warnings for food products containing a listed carcinogen or reproductive toxicant:Continue Reading Navigating the Legal Soup: A New “Short-Form” Recipe for Prop 65 Warnings on Food and Beverages
The Domino Effect: West Virginia’s State-Wide Dye Ban Leads Off FDA Action
While not often thought of as the pack leader on food regulatory issues, West Virginia recently did just that by becoming the first state to pass a state-wide ban on food dyes with the enactment of H.B. 2354 in March 2025.Continue Reading The Domino Effect: West Virginia’s State-Wide Dye Ban Leads Off FDA Action
Supplement to the 2022 Food Code
On November 4, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the publication of its Supplement to the 2022 Food Code. The Supplement updates the 2022 Food Code with retail food handling and safety recommendations formulated by regulatory officials, industry, academia, and consumers at the 2023 Biennial Meeting of the Conference for Food Protection. The Food Code is a non-binding publication by the FDA arising out of the work of the conference intended for states to enact into law, and/or for food service providers to adopt as best practices.Continue Reading Supplement to the 2022 Food Code
California Aims to Revolutionize Packaging and Food Ware: Answers to Key Questions about Recycling, Composting and Source Reduction Requirements
Plastic packaging and food ware are some of the first targets of California’s ambitious and far-reaching program to achieve a “Circular Economy” that reduces waste and pollution. The California Department of Resources, Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) is constructing a complex structure of procedures and requirements to reduce the total amount of plastic used in the state by at least 25 percent, to increase recycling of packaging and food service ware to 65%, and to ensure the use of recyclable or compostable materials in single-use packaging and containers for most products by 2032.Continue Reading California Aims to Revolutionize Packaging and Food Ware: Answers to Key Questions about Recycling, Composting and Source Reduction Requirements
Campaign Promises to Address Rising Prices at the Grocery Store Signal Stronger Price Gouging Investigations, Enforcement Actions, and Prohibitions to Come
Republican and Democrat candidates alike have promised along the campaign trail that they will work to address the costs of everyday essentials for American consumers, particularly for food. One of the centerpieces of the Harris-Walz campaign is enacting “the first-ever federal ban on price gouging on food and groceries”[1] and the Trump-Vance campaign has decried the rising price of eggs as a byproduct of the Biden Administration’s economic policies.[2] Candidates’ focus on the checkout counter is unsurprising given reports that rising prices are one of voters’ top concerns this election cycle. And while the Consumer Price Index indicates that the current rate of inflation is 2.4% and on a downward trend,[3] certain data show that the price for food has increased by an average of 25% across urban cities in the United States since 2020.[4]Continue Reading Campaign Promises to Address Rising Prices at the Grocery Store Signal Stronger Price Gouging Investigations, Enforcement Actions, and Prohibitions to Come