April 11, 2011 – Washington, DC, January 3, 2011. The President signed the Food Safety Modernization Act early this year, yet the FDA is still focused on printed labels on side panels of packaged food. Meanwhile the consumer is rapidly migrating to (unregulated) electronic formats of food labels. With the rise of computers, online grocery shopping, mobile devices and the opening of UPC (Universal Product Code) databases to the public, customary conditions under which labels are displayed or examined are changing.
Many online retailers have been voluntarily using electronic labeling for years. Online retailers, to protect themselves, post disclaimers advising consumers not to rely solely on electronic labeling but to read the printed label before consuming. The need for these online disclaimers emphasizes two points, that electronic labeling is unregulated and that electronic labeling is a primary source for ingredient lists and nutrition facts for online consumers.
GS1 (Global Standard One) USA and GS1 Canada, which regulate barcodes in North America, are aware consumers use mobile devices to access more detailed information about products. Barcodes themselves have very little data attached to them but they can allow users to access Electronic Product Catalogs which may contain such information as an ingredient list. GS1 USA and GS1 Canada has formed B2CAlliance to build consumer confidence in this information.
A business 2 consumer alliance that only includes retailers and manufacturers will not instill much confidence in the consumer. An alliance or collaboration with the FDA might be in both groups best interest. There is a massive wave of new information and changing conditions confronting consumers. The FDA must first be made aware of these changes and then move to address them. To that end the FDA has been officially petitioned to take action. The full petition can be viewed athttp://donteatthat.info/fdapetition.html.
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