FDA Updates Criteria for ‘Healthy’ Claim on Food Labels to Help America Eat Better

The US Food and Drug Administration has updated the labelling requirements for companies to market their foods as ‘healthy’ for the first time in 30 years.

To combat the “ever-growing epidemic of preventable diet-related chronic diseases” plaguing the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has revised rules for what foods constitute as ‘healthy’.

The update is said to be in line with “current nutrition science” and intends to make it easier for Americans to identify healthy food from packaging labels, with added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium now in sharp focus.

Diet-related chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in the US, with many of these chronic conditions experienced at higher rates by racial and ethnic minorities and low-income groups. The FDA’s rule, part of the White House National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, aims to give consumers access to “complete, accurate, and up-to-date nutrition information”.

The agency is also looking to create a ‘healthy’ symbol that manufacturers can choose to use on food labelling of products that fit the new criteria. This could be helpful for people “less family with nutrition information”.

Aside from the limits on salt, sugar and saturated fat, products must contain a certain amount of ingredients from at least one of the food groups online by the Dietary Guidelines of America, like fruits, vegetables, protein foods (such as beans), grains, dairy and dairy alternatives, and water.

The national dietary recommendations are themselves due for an update next year, and scientists on the advisory committee have urged the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services to advise Americans to eat less red meat and emphasise vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains and unsaturated fats.

White bread out, trail mixes in

The definition of the ‘healthy’ claim was first set in 1994, and based on the nutrition science and federal dietary guidelines of the time, it solely focused on individual nutrients. There were limits for saturated fat, total fat, cholesterol, and sodium, and the requirement of a certain amount of vitamins, minerals, protein and fibre.

But the FDA began working on an update in September 2022, aiming to align the definition with current science. “Today, we have a greater understanding of dietary patterns and their effects on health, and we recognise that foods are made up of a variety of nutrients that work together as part of a healthy dietary pattern,” the department says. “For example, we now know that the type of fat in the diet is more important than the total fat.”

Under the previous definition, foods like fortified white bread, highly sweetened yoghurt, cereals, and snacks, and fortified fruit punch could all claim to be healthy on their packaging. But under the new 318-page rule, these products can’t anymore. On the flip side, olive oil, avocado, trail mixes with nuts, seeds and dried fruits, and water couldn’t qualify as ‘healthy’ earlier, but can now bear the claim.

Other foods that manufacturers can market as healthy include canned, frozen and pre-prepared fruits and vegetables, and certain peanut butters. Ready meals that want to use the claim can’t have more than 10g of added sugar and 4g of saturated fat, and must contain three food group equivalents (how much of a particular food is required).

The shift of focus from individual nutrients to food groups that contain an array of nutrients is consistent with current nutrition science, according to the FDA. “Focusing on food groups better reflects the overall nutrient content of a food rather than focusing on one individual beneficial nutrient in isolation,” it says.

Manufacturers who choose to use the ‘healthy’ claim can start doing so from February 25 next year, but have been given three years to comply with the updated definition.

FDA ‘healthy’ label update met with praise and criticism

To explain why it has made the decision to update the ‘healthy’ foods definition, the FDA cited data that showed how Americans don’t meet current dietary recommendations across a host of foods and nutrients. For instance, 77% exceed the daily advised intake for saturated fat, 63% do so for added sugar, and 90% for sodium. Conversely, three-quarters of Americans eat fewer fruits and vegetables than recommended.

This has contributed to a rise in preventable conditions like type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Over two-thirds (69%) of Americans are overweight and 36% are obese, while one in 10 have diabetes (mostly type 2). And cardiovascular disease is the main cause of mortality in the US, leading to the death of one person every 33 seconds. “Improving nutrition is one of the best public health interventions for reducing these and other chronic illnesses and premature death,” says the FDA.

The food safety body has signed a deal with online grocery company Instacart to help consumers find healthy products through shopping filters and a virtual storefront.

Jim Jones, the agency’s deputy commissioner for human foods, said food labels like ‘healthy’ can be a “powerful tool for change”. “[They] may help foster a healthier food supply if manufacturers choose to reformulate their products to meet the new definition,” he said. “There’s an opportunity here for industry and others to join us in making ‘healthy’ a ubiquitous, quick signal to help people more easily build nutritious diets.”

The move was met with a polarising response. Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association, said the update would give people more confidence when shopping for healthy food, and hoped that it would “motivate food manufacturers” to develop new, healthier products.

But the Consumer Brands Association, a trade group representing some of the country’s largest food and drink companies, criticised the new definition as a violation of the First Amendment, since it excludes some packaged foods “despite countless years of industry innovation to provide healthier options”. “We remain concerned that this government regulation is not based on clear and unambiguous scientific evidence,” said Sarah Gallo, senior VP of product policy for the consortium.

It’s a pertinent point with the impending appointment of Robert F Kennedy as incoming president Donald Trump’s health secretary. Kennedy has made his disdain for processed foods clear, promising to remove them from school lunches. But the new rule wouldn’t be immune from intervention from Congress or executive branches, and with Trump’s penchant for fast food, it will be interesting to see whether it can be successfully implemented.