News & Insights

New Bill would Authorize Voluntary “Carcinogen-Free” Labeling of Food and Consumer Goods

By Mark L. Itzkoff A new bill introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives last month could eventually result in new labeling for food and other consumer products. H.R. 6601, The Carcinogen-Free Label Act of 2012 (CFLA) introduced last month by Rep. Theodore Deutch (D-FL) and Rep. Sue Myrick (R-NC), would require the U.S. Food and […]

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Humane Society’s Middlegame: HSUS Files Complaint With USDA Inspector General Over Pork Board’s Use of Checkoff Dollars

USDA / Chris Kirksey

It’s safe to say there is no love lost between the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC). HSUS is the so-called animal rights organization devoted to ending modern animal agriculture. The NPPC is the voice of America’s hog farmers on policy and advocacy issues. Needless to say,

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PCAST Report

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

Today, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) released its Report to the President on Agricultural Preparedness and the Agriculture Research Enterprise. The report outlines the importance of agricultural research as well as the top seven scientific challenges facing agriculture: The need to manage new pests, pathogens, and invasive plants; increase the

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The First Americans Are Last

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

By Marshall L. Matz, as published in Agri-Pulse The first Americans are still last in America, especially in the Northern Great Plains, where the disparity is the greatest. The unemployment rate on Indian reservations in the Dakotas, Montana and Wyoming exceed seventy and eighty percent. Unemployment on the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota is at

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New CDC Study of Calories from Alcohol Supports Alcohol Beverage Label Reform

Miscellaneous / Chris Kirksey

Alcohol accounts for a large portion of the daily calories consumed by many American adults, a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study concludes. The study found 19 percent of men and 6 percent of women take in more than 300 calories daily from alcoholic drinks. “I think people may be aware that

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Everyone has an Opinion on Unique Device Identification

1 Comment / FDA / Chris Kirksey

When the comment period closed on November 7, the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposed rule on Unique Device Identification (“UDI”) generated a total of 221 comments by various stakeholders. Although the FDA has come a long way since it first sought comments on the use of an identifier system in 2006, a review of the comments

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Compounding, Again

FDA / Chris Kirksey

The election is over, cabinet re-shuffling has begun, and hopefully you properly prepared and stored your food and avoided poisoning family and friends over the Thanksgiving holiday. As you can imagine, food preparation at a food and drug law firm is a very serious business. We regularly swap favorite turkey brining and stuffing recipes and

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An Idea for Barack Obama: Why Not Pick Sen. Dick Lugar as Secretary of State?

OFW Law News, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

By Kenneth D. Ackerman, as published on The Huffington Post So, President Obama, you need a new Secretary of State to replace Hillary Clinton, but you don’t like any of the choices sitting on your desk? You think Susan Rice deserves it and would do a great job, but she comes with too much controversy? You feel

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Splish/Splash: No Original Subject Matter Jurisdiction Over EPA’s Water Transfer Rule

EPA / Chris Kirksey

In a decision with potentially broad implications, the Eleventh Circuit recently concluded that it lacked original subject matter jurisdiction over petitions for review of an EPA rule which freed federal, state and municipal agencies from obtaining a Clean Water Act permit for certain water transfers. In Friends of the Everglades v. EPA, the Circuit Court

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Food Labeling Politics – What the Election Results May Mean for Your Company

FDA / Chris Kirksey

The election is over and the current Administration will stay in the White House. Food labeling may not have been among the top issues on the minds of American voters. But the election results will have an impact on food manufacturers, retailers, and restaurant operators who are concerned about the prospect of new FDA regulations,

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Block Grants: Over Sold – Under Thought

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

By Marshall L. Matz and Roger R. Szemraj, as published in Agri-Pulse There has been a lot of discussion lately about converting various food assistance programs from their current status as entitlement programs into a block grant. This is not a new idea. It was part of the “Personal Responsibility Act” included in Speaker Newt Gingrich’s 1995-1996 Contract

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Marcia Fudge, Member of House Ag Committee, to Chair Congressional Black Caucus

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

On November 14th, the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) unanimously elected Congresswoman Marcia Fudge (D-OH) to serve as Chair during the 113th Congress. Rep. Fudge is the first member of the House Agriculture Committee to serve as CBC chair. The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), for whom we are the U.S. representative, is delighted by the election of

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Can FDA Regulate Compounding? FDA Doesn’t Think So. . . But It Kind of Tried To

FDA / Chris Kirksey

As the impact of the deadly meningitis outbreak grows, questions about FDA’s authority to regulate pharmacy compounding have arisen. New England Compounding Center Inc.’s (NECC) tainted, injectable steroid, methylprednisolone acetate, is now linked to 461 infections, including 32 deaths. In testimony this week before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, FDA

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History Suggests Grand Bargain to Avert Fiscal Cliff

OFW Law News, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

By Kenneth D. Ackerman, as published in Bloomberg News. The “fiscal cliff,” a combination of tax increases and severe spending cuts scheduled to kick in next year, is a product of multiple deceptions. Both the expiration date on the Bush-era tax cuts and the trillion-dollar “sequesters” that were enacted as part of last year’s debt- ceiling

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BPA: The Press Rounds Up the Usual Suspects and Gets it Wrong

FDA / Chris Kirksey

By Mark L. Itzkoff Over the past few months, articles have been published claiming possible links between bisphenol A (BPA) and a variety of human health problems including obesity, thyroid changes, and male infertility. Many of the recent stories leave consumers misinformed about possible exposure to BPA and implicate products that do not contain BPA. For example, NBC News

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California Prop 37 Fails to Pass

FDA, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

Among the casualties on election day this year was California Prop 37, defeated by a vote of 53% to 47%. Proposition 37, the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act, was a ballot initiative that would have required special labeling of foods that have been genetically engineered or contain genetically engineered ingredients. According to

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2012 Elections Report; Updated Dec. 11

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

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2012 Elections Report; Updated Dec. 11 Read More »

The Waiting Game

FDA, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

It’s been a weird week. The “Frankenstorm” also known as Sandy blew through Washington, closing everything from the stalwart federal government to the Metro system. OFW Law weathered the storm pretty well, though the view outside my window of the muddy, debris-filled Potomac is an ever-present reminder that our problems pale in comparison to those

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Eight Isn’t Enough: American Farm Bureau Permitted to Intervene In WV Poultry Dust Suit against EPA

EPA / Chris Kirksey

On October 9, 2012, a federal judge in Elkins, West Virginia, issued an order allowing the American Farm Bureau Federation and the West Virginia Farm Bureau (Farm Bureau) to intervene in a lawsuit filed by a West Virginia poultry producer against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Alt v. EPA. The Farm Bureau’s intervention will result

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George S. McGovern

OFW Law News, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

There has been an outpouring of emotion and praise mourning the loss of Senator George S. McGovern. While he was a liberal Democrat, he is being recognized as a great humanitarian by both Republicans and Democrats. From President Obama and Vice President Biden, to the Secretary General of the United Nations and Senator Bob Dole,

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John Block Reports: California’s Preposterous Prop 37

Miscellaneous / Chris Kirksey

OFW Law founding principal Richard L. Frank fills in for former USDA Secretary John R. Block on John Block Reports. On Election Day, California voters will decide on another food labeling ballot initiative, one that is being watched intently by the food industry. If it passes, the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act, popularly known as Prop

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Here’s Your Chance to Fix the Budget

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

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Safety v. Innovation – How the European Commission’s Proposed Regulation Hopes to Strike the Right Balance

FDA / Chris Kirksey

By Kathryn E. Balmford Back in January, Jeff Shuren, M.D., the Director of the Center for Devices and Radiological Health at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), made headlines when comparing the European Union’s (EU) regulation of medical devices to FDA’s. When asked by a reporter whether proposed changes to FDA’s 510(k) premarket clearance system

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Scaling Up African Agriculture

Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

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POM Wonderful vs. FTC: The Epic War Continues

FDA / Chris Kirksey

There are some spectacles we geeks in the food and drug bar follow as avidly as any mini-series. The epic, two-year battle between POM Wonderful (producer of pomegranate products) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is almost as addictive as HBO’s “Game of Thrones” – only without all the beheadings. Though POM Wonderful extols the health

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OFW Law’s John Block Participates in Panel of Former USDA Secretaries

OFW Law News / Chris Kirksey

By John R. Block, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1981-1985 Recently, I had the pleasure of joining three other former Secretaries of Agriculture at the University of Nebraska for a lively and informational discussion to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Morrill Act, which created the land grant college system back in 1862. When

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Deadly Meningitis Outbreak Linked To Compounded Steroid— The Tipping Point For Compounders?

FDA / Chris Kirksey

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California’s Prop 37 — A Prop Too Far?

FDA, Public Policy / Chris Kirksey

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Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Nothing Magical about FDA Warning Letters for Cosmetics with Age-Related Claims

FDA / Chris Kirksey

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Class Action Consumer Litigation: A Rising Enforcement Risk for Aggressive Food Labeling Claims

FDA / Chris Kirksey

The number of class action lawsuits targeting food labeling claims has risen dramatically over the past few years. These are cases alleging that a food product’s labeling (and/or advertising) violates state consumer protection laws. As a result, when a food company now considers whether to include an aggressive claim in commercial marketing, it should consider

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