Regulatory

Could FDA make a move to ban synthetic food dyes? According to an article in the Chicago Tribune, the agency has scheduled a March hearing to discuss whether these dyes may be risky to the health of young children.

Probiotic industry specialists are hoping that the FTC’s recent dispute with Dannon (White Plains, NY) over probiotic label claims will not devalue the sound science that exists within the field of probiotic science.

After a lengthy exchange of debates and rewrites, the U.S. House today passed the Food Safety Modernization Act by a vote of 215 to 144.

The FTC announced yesterday that it has entered into a consent agreement with Dannon in which the brand will drop what the FTC says are deceptive advertising claims for its probiotic Activia yogurt and DanActive dairy drink.

President Obama today signed off on The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which will for the first time set nutrition standards for all foods provided in schools.

The dietary supplements industry will have the valuable opportunity to meet with member of Congress, especially new members, during the Natural Products Association’s (NPA; Washington, DC) 14th annual Natural Products Day on Wednesday, April 6.

The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA; Silver Spring, MD) has submitted its comments on FTC’s proposed changes to its Green Guides covering the use of environmental marketing claims.

Excipients might not always be the star of a dietary supplement product-that role most likely goes to the active ingredient-but make no mistake that excipients are more than just “filler.” And, excipients will need to answer to stricter FDA regulation in the near future, according to David Schoneker, director of global regulatory affairs for Colorcon (Harleysville, PA) and past chairman of the International Pharamceutical Excipients Council (IPEC). Schoneker spoke at a recent webcast sponsored by the Council for Responsible Nutrition and Virgo Publishing.

There’s a train about to leave the station, and I sure want dietary supplements to be on it. That train is healthcare reform, or at least a substantial rethinking of the approach to healthcare in this country.

The Celiac Sprue Association (CSA) has allowed Hugo Naturals’ complete line of natural body-care products to bear the association’s gluten-free seal.

The Korean Food and Drug Administration has approved a health claim for Proprietary Nutritionals’ (Kearny, NJ) Cran-Max cranberry concentrate.

MegaNatural Patented

Polyphenolics’ (Madera, CA) has patented its MegaNatural-BP grape seed extract, clinically shown to offer benefits to blood pressure and metabolic syndrome.