Fat-Reduced Milk Products Join the Food Labeling Fol

[FDA]

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[U.S. Food and Drug Administration]

Skimming the Milk Label

Fat-Reduced Milk Products Join the Food Labeling Fold

by Paula Kurtzweil

Milk, that all-American food, is taking on some all-American
names--like "fat free," "reduced fat" and "light."

Starting Jan. 1, 1998, the labeling of fat-reduced milk products will
have to follow the same requirements the Food and Drug Administration
established almost five years ago for the labeling of just about every
other food reduced in fat. From now on: table of new names for milk
products
* 2 percent milk will become known, for example, as "reduced fat" or
"less fat" instead of "low fat"
* 1 percent milk will remain "low fat" or become, for example,
"little fat"
* skim will retain its name or be called, for example, fat-free,
zero-fat, or no-fat milk.

Also, the regulations that implement the labeling changes give dairy
processors more leeway to devise new formulations. As a result,
consumers may see a broader range of milk and other dairy products,
including "light" milk with at least 50 percent less fat than whole,
or full-fat, milk and other reformulated milks with reduced fat
contents but greater consumer appeal.

"I expect that there are going to be many more milk products for
consumers to choose from" says Michelle Smith, a food technologist in
FDA's Office of Food Labeling. "This is positive for milk consumption
in general, and it's likely that consumers will be able to find a
lower fat milk product that they like." ([3]See accompanying article.)

FDA issued a final rule in November 1996 that revoked the standards of
identity--the prescribed recipes that manufacturers of a particular
food must follow--for many fat-reduced milk and other dairy products.
This allowed the agency to bring milk labeling in line with existing
labeling requirements for nutrient content claims, such as "fat free,"
"low fat," "high protein," and others.

Lower fat milk products will still need to be nutritionally equivalent
to full-fat milk and provide at least the same amounts of the
fat-soluble vitamins A and D as full-fat milk. Vitamins A and D are
lost when milk fat is reduced or removed.

"[Milk] is just as nutritional as before," says LeGrande "Shot"
Hudson, dairy plant manager for the Landover, Md.-based Giant Food
Inc. "[The milk industry] just changed the name[s] a little."

_Joint Effort_

FDA's final rule was prompted in part by a petition filed jointly by
the Milk Industry Foundation and the Center for Science in the Public
Interest (CSPI), a consumer advocacy group, and a separate petition
filed by the American Dairy Products Institute. The petitions asked
FDA to lift the labeling exemption provided for in the Nutrition
Labeling and Education Act of 1990 for lower fat dairy products.

FDA agreed to revoke the standards of identity for low-fat milk and 11
other lower fat dairy products, including low-fat cottage cheese,
sweetened condensed skimmed milk, sour half-and-half, evaporated
skimmed milk, and low-fat dry milk. These products are now bound by
the "general standard" for nutritionally modified standardized foods.
This means the nutrients that lower fat milk products provide, other
than fat, must be at least equal to full-fat milk before vitamins A
and D are added.

FDA also agreed to allow manufacturers to use "skim" as a synonym for
"fat free" in the labeling of dairy products because, the agency
concluded, most consumers realize that skim milk means no fat.

The changes do not affect lower fat yogurt products. FDA decided to
keep the standards of identity for the time being to further consider
manufacturers' concerns about fortifying yogurt with vitamin A, a
nutrient found in full-fat yogurt.

FDA, along with the milk industry and nutrition educators, believes
the label changes will give consumers more accurate, useful
information about milk. Because claims on milk labels will be
consistent with claims on other foods, consumers will know, for
example, that "low-fat" milk (formerly known as 1 percent milk) will
be similar in fat content to "low-fat" cookies. (Both can provide no
more than 3 grams of fat per serving. The serving size for each is
listed on their label's Nutrition Facts panel.)

The improved accuracy of milk labeling is particularly important for
skim milk, experts say, because "skim" carries a negative connotation
for many consumers. "They think it is skimmed of all its good
nutrients," says Brad Legreid, executive director of the Wisconsin
Dairy Products Association. "That it's flat and tasteless. But that's
not it at all."

Or, they view it in the same negative light as dry powdered milk, says
Margo Wootan, a senior scientist with CSPI. She coordinates the
group's public health campaign to encourage consumers to use milk that
provides 4 percent or less of the Daily Value for fat--that is,
low-fat or skim milk. She prefers the term "fat-free" to describe skim
milk because she says: "It is more recognizable to the public. And
"fat-free" better describes the benefits of skim milk."

_Dietary Significance_

The goal of the labeling changes, as many nutrition experts see it, is
to help consumers select milk products that can help them lower their
fat and saturated fat intakes to recommended levels. The Dietary
Guidelines for Americans recommends limiting fat to no more than 30
percent of calories and saturated fat to less than 10 percent of
calories. There is substantial scientific evidence to show that low
fat intakes may help reduce the risk of some cancers, and diets low in
saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease.

Switching from higher fat to lower fat milk products can have a
particularly significant impact on lowering fat and saturated fat
intakes because milk plays such an important role in the American
diet, CSPI's Wootan says. She says that milk is a major contributor of
saturated fat to the American adult's diet. Only cheese and beef
contribute more.

Considering that 240 milliliters (one cup) of full-fat milk provides
26 percent of the Daily Value for saturated fat, while fat-free milk
provides none, switching from full-fat to fat-free milk can drop
saturated fat intake considerably, she says.

"It's an easy way to lower fat intake," she says. "It doesn't take a
lot of time. No preparation skills are needed. It takes only five
seconds at the dairy case to move your hand to the fat-free [skim] or
low-fat [formerly 1 percent] milk. It's a good first step towards
healthy eating."

Wootan believes that the revised milk labeling will make especially
clear to consumers the difference between reduced-fat (formerly 2
percent low-fat milk) and low-fat (1 percent low-fat milk). "A lot of
people use 2 percent milk thinking it is the same as 1 percent," she
says, because the previous labels referred to both as "low fat."
However, reduced-fat milk provides almost twice the amount of fat and
saturated fat as low-fat milk.

The new labels will "show a difference," she says, "and, [I think,]
more people will go to drinking 1 percent or skim milk."

_New Names in the Dairy Case_

But first, they'll need to get used to milk's new names. Joan Taylor,
consumer affairs manager for Schnuck Markets Inc., of St. Louis,
recalls the confusion that arose when manufacturers began relabeling
ice milk as "low-fat" ice cream in 1994, under another FDA rule. The
company received a number of calls from shoppers wanting to know why
they had stopped selling ice milk, she says. "We hadn't," she says.
"We only changed the name."

Some groceries and milk processors plan to educate consumers about the
label changes. Schnuck Markets, for example, was planning at press
time to post signs at their stores' dairy cases explaining what the
new names mean. And its dairy plant planned to label, at least at
first, lower fat milk with both the new name, followed by its former
name or the milk's fat content. An example might be "reduced-fat milk,
contains 2 percent milk fat."

Efforts such as these should help consumers catch on quickly to the
new names, but nutrition and industry experts hope the new labels'
potential benefits will be longer lasting.

"This is not just a cosmetic change," CSPI's Wootan says. "This is an
important strategy to healthier eating."

Paula Kurtzweil is a member of FDA's public affairs staff.

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Raising Milk Consumption

[4]graph of milk sales since 1976 While the new labels may promote
greater consumption of the lower fat milk products, some nutrition
experts--and industry members in particular--hope the changes will
increase milk consumption overall.

LeGrande "Shot" Hudson, dairy plant manager for Giant Food Inc., in
Landover, Md., notes that the industry already has taken steps to
entice consumers, especially teens and young adults, to drink more
milk. It's undertaken major advertising campaigns and, in an effort to
make milk more palatable to people who dislike the taste of plain
milk, has begun marketing novel flavored products, such as banana,
blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, and mocha milk products.

"We don't all wear the moustache," he says, alluding to the industry's
current milk advertisements in which celebrities tout their preference
for plain milk.

Michelle Smith, a food technologist in FDA's Office of Food Labeling,
believes that milk processors will have even more flexibility to
develop products with greater consumer appeal, now that the standards
of identity for lower fat milks have been revoked. For example,
processors will be able to add fat substitutes, stabilizers or
thickeners to give lower fat milks a creamier texture and better
sensation in the mouth or coloring to make the products whiter. When
added, these ingredients must be listed on the label.

"There are many ways to modify a food," she says. "So, if you come
across a reduced-fat product, and you want to know how they did it,
look at the ingredient list."

With greater product development comes greater product choices for
consumers, she says, and that will allow consumers to make better,
lower fat choices that they can enjoy.

--P.K.

FDA Consumer magazine (January-February 1998)
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[5]FDA Home Page [6]Table of Contents

References

1. http://www.fda.gov/fdahomepage.html
2. http://www.fda.gov/fdac/198_toc.html
3. http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/1998/ly3898.html#milk
4. http://www.fda.gov/fdac/graphics/1998graphics/Milkchart.jpeg
5. http://www.fda.gov/fdahomepage.html
6. http://www.fda.gov/fdac/198_toc.html