Enjoy Life Foods CEO Tells FDA Grocery Stores Remain A Dangerous Minefield for Food Allergic, Food Intolerant and Celiac...( At the invit...),Health

At the invitation of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Scott Mandell, CEO, President and Co-Founder of Enjoy Life Foods, the country’s leading manufacturer of allergy-friendly and gluten-free foods, provided comments at a public meeting on the use of advisory labeling of allergens in foods. Mandell cautioned that current labeling regulations are not sufficient to adequately protect food-allergic, Celiac and other special diet consumers.

WASHINGTON (Business Wire EON) September 16, 2008 -- Speaking on behalf of the American Celiac Disease Alliance (ACDA) and Enjoy Life Foods, Mandell said, "The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA) was an important first step in helping special dieters get the critical information they need to make informed food choices. However, despite the industry's best efforts at truthful food labeling, grocery stores are still a dangerous minefield for food-allergic, food-intolerant and Celiac shoppers."

Today's public meeting by the FDA is the first step in developing a long-term strategy to assist manufacturers in using allergen advisory labeling that is truthful and not misleading, conveys a clear and uniform message, and adequately informs food-allergic consumers and their caregivers. To that end, FDA solicited comments and information to determine 1) how manufacturers currently use advisory labeling, 2) how consumers interpret different advisory labeling statements, 3) what specific wording is most effective in communicating the likelihood that an allergen may be present and 4) whether consumers find advisory labeling helpful in making food purchasing decisions.

According to Mandell, "Advisory warnings are confusing, inconsistent and do not provide adequate information in order for the millions of Americans who must follow special diets due to food allergies, food intolerances, Ce
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