Dairy Champions Prod FDA to Enforce Dairy Terms at Legislative Hearing

NMPF helped several dairy champions in both parties shine a spotlight on the Food and Drug Administration’s decades-long refusal to enforce dairy product standards of identity Sept. 10 when Jim Jones, the agency’s Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods, appeared at a congressional hearing on FDA’s human foods program.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health Subcommittee hearing examined numerous bipartisan bills, including the NMPF-backed DAIRY PRIDE Act (H.R. 1462) to compel FDA to enforce dairy standards of identity in the interest of public health and truth in labeling. The bill is sponsored by Representatives John Joyce, R-PA, Ann Kuster, D-NH, Mike Simpson, R-ID, Joe Courtney, D-CT, Derrick Van Orden, R-WI, and Angie Craig, D-MN. Senators Tammy Baldwin, D-WI, Jim Risch, R-ID, Peter Welch, D-VT, and Susan Collins, R-ME, are leading the bill in the Senate.

In an exchange with Jones, Rep. Joyce, the bill’s lead House sponsor, said the agency’s 2023 draft guidance regarding the labeling of plant-based milk alternatives is woefully inadequate. That draft guidance suggested that plant-based product manufacturers disclose on their packaging the nutritional deficiencies of their products relative to real milk, but it made no attempt to discourage manufacturers from using the term ‘milk’ in the name of the product.

“The nutritional value of dairy products is superior to these imitators” and should not be sold in dairy cases, said Joyce. “Simply urging companies to spell out the nutritional deficiency will not solve the problem of consumer confusion, which stems from assumptions based on the use of the term ‘milk’. And ‘milk’, I am concluding with you today, comes from a lactating mammal, and the imitators – the fakes – are simply not milk.”

Backed by numerous public health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, NMPF has long argued that consumers do not fully understand the nutritional differences between real dairy and its plant-based imitators. Rep. Kuster put emphasis on this point, stating that “so many public health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, have urged FDA to remove the term ‘milk’ from plant-based beverages.”

Finally, Rep. Kat Cammack, R-FL, a DAIRY PRIDE cosponsor, pressed Jones for a timeline on when FDA would make last year’s draft guidance final. FDA said after the hearing its expectation was that the guidance should be published by the end of 2025.

DAIRY PRIDE Momentum Builds

House introduction of the DAIRY PRIDE Act on March 8 intensified mobilization among dairy and its allies as FDA’s proposed guidance on the proper labeling of plant-based beverages brings new momentum for NMPF’s efforts at ensuring marketplace integrity.

The Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act” aka DAIRY PRIDE, requires FDA to enforce its standards of identity and would supersede the inadequate solution it offered in February, in which plant-based beverages could call themselves “milk” as long as they clearly state their nutritional differences with real dairy.

A bipartisan group of six House members introduced DAIRY PRIDE, led by Reps. John Joyce, R-PA, and Ann Kuster, D-NH. NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern applauded the members – who also included Reps. Mike Simpson, R-ID, Joe Courtney, D-CT, Derrick Van Orden, R-WI, and Angie Craig, D-MN. Now that FDA has made clear it won’t enforce dairy standards of identity of its own volution, “DAIRY PRIDE is necessary for FDA to fulfill its own responsibilities,” Mulhern said.

House introduction followed February’s Senate DAIRY PRIDE introduction led by Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-WI; Jim Risch, R-ID; Peter Welch, D-VT and Susan Collins, R-ME. Baldwin explained during her guest spot on NMPF’s “Dairy Defined” podcast that the DAIRY PRIDE could pass Congress this year via one of several vehicles, including the farm bill due this year.

“Many of the folks that I’m joining forces with are going to have significant input as we draft a new farm bill, which is something that I expect to get completed this calendar year. So that’s certainly one area that we can look towards,” she said. “We also have funding bills for the Food and Drug Administration, and that would certainly be another opportunity to look at this type of legislation.”

Meanwhile, NMPF is leading grass-roots advocacy on labeling, with a call-to-action organized around the FDA guidance. FDA is accepting comments on its draft guidance until April 24. To participate in NMPF’s call to action, click here.

NMPF Lauds House Re-Introduction of DAIRY PRIDE Act, Following Senate

From NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern:

“The National Milk Producers Federation applauds the bipartisan members of the House of Representatives who today re-introduced the DAIRY PRIDE Act, which adds momentum to legislation that saw Senate re-introduction last week and needs to pass Congress this year.

“With proposed FDA guidance that acknowledges the problem of consumer confusion over the nutritional content of plant-based beverages, but doesn’t go far enough to solve the problem by enforcing its own standards of identity and limiting dairy terms used in food labeling to dairy products, DAIRY PRIDE is necessary for FDA to fulfill its own responsibilities.

“To eliminate consumer confusion over their nutritional content, plant-based drinks or beverages shouldn’t be allowed to use dairy terms in their labeling. That’s common-sense, and DAIRY PRIDE is a common-sense solution. We thank the House sponsors of the legislation – Reps. John Joyce, R-PA; Ann Kuster, D-NH; Mike Simpson, R-ID; Joe Courtney, D-CT; Derrick Van Orden, R-WI; and Angie Craig, D-MN – for being champions for consumers in this important nutrition and health issue.

The Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act” aka DAIRY PRIDE, requires FDA to enforce its standards of identity and would supersede the inadequate solution it offered last week, in which plant-based beverages could call themselves “milk” as long as they clearly state their nutritional differences with real dairy. FDA is accepting comments on its draft guidance until April 24.

DAIRY PRIDE was introduced in the Senate last week. Lead sponsors in that chamber were: Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-WI; Jim Risch, R-ID; Peter Welch, D-VT and Susan Collins, R-ME.

FDA Inaction Makes DAIRY PRIDE Necessary, Sen. Baldwin Says

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) unwillingness to limit dairy terms to true dairy products makes passage of the DAIRY PRIDE Act more necessary than ever, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-WI, said in a Dairy Defined podcast released today.

“They’re going to continue to allow mislabeled imitation products to be on the market,” Baldwin said. “Wisconsin farmers work so hard to meet the FDA standards of nutrition and quality. They can’t put the word ‘milk’ on the side of a carton of milk unless they meet those standards. It is not fair for plant-based products to be able to say they’re milk when they don’t meet those standards at all.

Baldwin, along with Sens. Jim Risch, R-ID; Peter Welch, D-VT, and Susan Collins, R-ME, last week reintroduced the DAIRY PRIDE Act, which would require FDA to enforce its standards of identity and supersede the inadequate draft guidance it offered in February, in which plant-based beverages could call themselves “milk” as long as they clearly state their nutritional differences with real dairy.

Baldwin said DAIRY PRIDE could pass Congress this year via one of several vehicles, including the farm bill due this year.

“Many of the folks that I’m joining forces with are going to have significant input as we draft a new farm bill, which is something that I expect to get completed this calendar year. So that’s certainly one area that we can look towards. We also have funding bills for the Food and Drug Administration, and that would certainly be another opportunity to look at this type of legislation.”

DAIRY PRIDE is an acronym for the Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese to Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act.

FDA’s guidance is open for public comment until April 24. Dairy advocates may learn more about the issue and offer comments here.

The full podcast is here. You can also find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.


 

NMPF Praises Re-Introduction of DAIRY PRIDE Act, Calls on Congress to Finish FDA’s Job

NMPF commended a bipartisan group of senators, led by Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-WI; Jim Risch, R-ID; Peter Welch, D-VT, and Susan Collins, R-ME, for re-introducing the DAIRY PRIDE Act, which would end the problem of consumer confusion of the nutritional content of plant-based beverages the Food and Drug Administration took inadequate steps to remedy last week.

“DAIRY PRIDE is needed more than ever, now that FDA has offered guidance on the labeling of plant-based beverages that, while taking steps in the right direction, ultimately doesn’t remedy the problem it seeks to solve, which is the proven confusion among consumers created when plant-based beverages steal dairy terms to make their products appear healthier than they really are,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation.

“FDA has acknowledged the problem of nutritional confusion without providing  a complete solution,” Mulhern said. “DAIRY PRIDE solves the problem by requiring FDA to enforce what its own standards of identity state: that ‘milk’ is a term reserved for animal products and that plant-based drinks or beverages shouldn’t be allowed to use dairy terms in their labeling.”

The Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act” aka DAIRY PRIDE, requires FDA to enforce its standards of identity and would supersede the inadequate solution it offered last week, in which plant-based beverages could call themselves “milk” as long as they clearly state their nutritional differences with real dairy. While the long-awaited guidance acknowledges the  need to address consumer confusion, it does not resolve the cause of the problem, which is imitators using dairy terms. The logical solution is to limit dairy terms to dairy products, which DAIRY PRIDE would achieve.

FDA is accepting comments on its draft guidance until April 24. Meanwhile, DAIRY PRIDE introduction in the House of Representatives is expected within weeks.

“Consumers and dairy producers, along with their allies in the nutrition and health communities, thank Sens. Baldwin, Risch, Welch and Collins for their leadership in this important public-health issue,” Mulhern said. “We look forward to working with our Senate and House champions to enact the DAIRY PRIDE Act during the 118th Congress.”