To facilitate the distribution of food during the COVID-19 pandemic, the US FDA recently issued a guidance document titled “Temporary Policy Regarding Nutrition Labeling of Certain Packaged Food During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency”.

This guidance document outlines different labeling requirements for restaurants, food manufacturing facilities, and if retail packaging is unavailable.

Labeling Requirements for Restaurants & Food Manufacturing Facilities

Foods currently labeled for foodservice that contain the following information may be sold in retail, provided that the food label does not have any nutrition claims:

• a statement of identity,
• an ingredient statement,
• the name and place of business of the food manufacturer, packer, or distributor,
• net quantity of contents, and
• allergen information required by the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA)

Labeling Requirements if Retail Packaging is Unavailable

For foods that have not yet been labeled, if retail packaging for certain food products (although FDA has not provided further clarification on which food products) is unavailable, the FDA does not intend to object to the further production of food labeled for use in foodservice establishments that is intended to be sold at retail until retail becomes available.

The compliance date for the new nutritional labeling requirements for food and supplements (i.e. the New Nutrition Facts Panel Format, new daily values, etc), has been postponed until at least the end of 2020.

This guidance does not apply to foods prepared by restaurants, which do not require nutritional labeling.

If you have any questions about this article or any related to food labeling, or any other regulatory matter, please contact us today.