Food & Water Watch

Protecting State Labeling Laws

Congress made state food safety laws disappear!

Bad news, folks. On March 8th 2006, the House of Representatives voted to wipe out over 200 state food safety laws, and to jeopardize state food safety programs. By passing the National Uniformity for Food Labeling Act, they bowed to industry pressure, selling out consumers in the process. H.R. 4167 will prohibit food warning notification requirements that are not identical to federal law, as well as proscribe definitions of food adulteration that do not match federal law. State warning levels about carcinogens in baked goods, arsenic in bottled water, and toxins in shellfish are sure to disappear.

This bill (HR 4167) is so damaging to consumer protections and state food safety programs that 37 Attorney Generals oppose it, noting, “states would be forbidden from adopting their own policies, even if the federal government has not acted on a particular area or adopted a particular warning.” The Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) and the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture strongly object to this bill, believing it inhibits states from protecting consumers against adulterated food. Consumers are losing decades of hard-won laws and regulations that protect them and inform them about the food they eat.

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