Five Biggest Struggles with FDA’s New Nutrition Label: Changes in Portion Sizes, Health Claims

If a food or beverage package contains contents that could be considered multiple servings, FDA may require that the package feature two nutrition facts panels-one that reflects what’s consumed if the entire product is eaten in a single sitting, and another that reflects the contents of just a single serving.

In addition to the graphics headache that would ensue, this change could affect products that currently make health claims or nutrient content claims because these claims are based on the RACC (Reference Amount Customarily Consumed).

“If, after a change in RACC, the product is no longer able to make the previously reported health or nutrient content claims, the manufacturer would either need to remove the claim from the product label or reformulate to continue making the claim,” Braithwaite says. 

She uses ice cream as an example. “Currently, a low-fat ice cream with 3 g of fat per ½-cup serving is eligible to make a low-fat claim on the label. The proposed rules would double the RACC for ice cream from ½ cup to 1 cup. This increase in portion size would double the fat content from 3 g to 6 g of fat per RACC, making the product ineligible to keep the low-fat claim.”

Next>> Redefining Dietary Fiber

Photo © iStockphoto.com