The Food and Drug Administration released final rules on labeling foods as “healthy,” tightening limits for sugar, sodium and saturated fat.. The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday updated the definitions of the term “healthy” for labeling on foods, a move that reflected changes in nutrition and that tightened limits on saturated fat, sugar and salt in food that could be sold under that claim.. The effort, while seemingly an inconsequential update to a 30-year-old term, set off a veritable food fight of lobbying over which foods made the cut and whether the F.D.A. would violate First Amendment protections in trying to define “healthy.”. The F.D.A. said Thursday that its policy, outlined in a final rule, was meant to “empower consumers” by helping them quickly spot nutritious food at the grocery store.. “The F.D.A. recognizes that diet-related diseases, including heart disease, cancer and diabetes, are the leading cause of disability and disease in the United States and contribute to America’s status of having the lowest life expectancy amongst large, high-income countries,” Jim Jones, the director of the agency’s food division, said during a news conference. He added, “We also know that food labeling can be a powerful tool for change.”. The 318-page rule sets forth highly specific guidelines around what food manufacturers can label “healthy” or other terms, like “healthful” or “healthiest.” To make that claim for instance, a 50-gram serving of a dairy product must contain no more than 5 percent of a person’s daily sugar level and 10 percent of a person’s daily salt and saturated fat limit. Similar standards would apply to fruits, grains, vegetables, meat and other foods.. The new definition would include some processed and packaged food and several items previously excluded from the definition of “healthy,” like nuts, seeds, salmon, some oils and water. It would also strip the label from other foods, including yogurts, fruit cups and whole wheat bread products that are considered too high in sugar or sodium.. We are having trouble retrieving the article content.. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.. Thank you for your patience while we verify access.. Already a subscriber? Log in.. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
