The International Dairy Foods Association and the National Milk Producers Federation are asking the FDA to ease rules that require them to make very clear, on the front of the package, when products like chocolate, strawberry and vanilla milk have reduced calories or sugar because they are sweetened with artificial sweeteners.
Here's their submission and at the bottom you can read how to send in comments:
The IDFA and NMPF jointly submitted a citizen petition (Ref. 1) on March 16, 2009, requesting that FDA amend the standard of identity in part 131 (21 CFR part 131) for milk (§ 131.110).
Specifically, the petition requests that FDA amend § 131.110(c)(2) to allow the use of “any safe and suitable” sweetener in optional characterizing flavoring ingredients used in milk. [1] The petition also requests that FDA similarly amend the standards of identity for 17 other milk and cream products. Those standards (hereinafter referred to as the “additional dairy standards”) are as follows: Acidified milk (§ 131.111), cultured milk (§ 131.112), sweetened condensed milk (§ 131.120), nonfat dry milk (§ 131.125), nonfat dry milk fortified with vitamins A and D (§ 131.127), evaporated milk (§ 131.130), dry cream (§ 131.149), heavy cream (§ 131.150), light cream (§ 131.155), light whipping cream (§ 131.157), sour cream (§ 131.160), acidified sour cream (§ 131.162), eggnog (§ 131.170), half-and-half (§ 131.180), yogurt (§ 131.200), lowfat yogurt (§ 131.203), and nonfat yogurt (§ 131.206). The petition asks that the standards of identity for these products be amended to provide for the use of any safe and suitable sweetener in the optional ingredients. [2]
IDFA and NMPF request their proposed
amendments to the milk standard of identity to allow optional
characterizing flavoring ingredients used in milk (e.g., chocolate
flavoring added to milk) to be sweetened with any safe and suitable
sweetener—including non-nutritive sweeteners such as aspartame. IDFA and
NMPF state that the proposed amendments would promote more healthful
eating practices and reduce childhood obesity by providing for
lower-calorie flavored milk products. They state that lower-calorie
flavored milk would particularly benefit school children who, according
to IDFA and NMPF, are more inclined to drink flavored milk than
unflavored milk at school.
As further support for the petition, IDFA and
NMPF state that the proposed amendments would assist in meeting several
initiatives aimed at improving the nutrition and health profile of food
served in the nation's schools. Those initiatives include state-level
programs designed to limit the quantity of sugar served to children
during the school day. Finally, IDFA and NMPF argue that the proposed
amendments to the milk standard of identity would promote honesty and
fair dealing in the marketplace and are therefore appropriate under
section 401 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 341).
The petition acknowledges that the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in optional characterizing flavoring ingredients
in milk is allowed under the existing regulatory scheme, with certain
additional requirements. The regulatory framework governing the naming
of standardized foods that do not fully comply with the relevant
standards of identity changed with the passage of the Nutrition Labeling
and Education Act of 1990 and FDA's rulemaking establishing the
Agency's requirements for foods named by use of a nutrient content claim
and a standardized term (§ 130.10 (21 CFR 130.10)).
Section 130.10(d) allows the addition of safe and suitable ingredients
to a food named by use of a nutrient content claim and a standardized
term when these ingredients are used to, among other things, add
sweetness to ensure that the modified food is not inferior in
performance characteristic to the standardized food even if such
ingredients are not specifically provided for by the relevant food
standard.
Therefore, while the milk standard of identity in § 131.110
only provides for the use of “nutritive sweetener” in an optional
characterizing flavor, milk may contain a characterizing flavor that is
sweetened with a non-nutritive sweetener if the food's label bears a
nutrient content claim (e.g., “reduced calorie”) and the non-nutritive
sweetener is used to add sweetness to the product so that it is not
inferior in its sweetness property compared to its standardized
counterpart. However, IDFA and NMPF argue that nutrient content claims
such as “reduced calorie” are not attractive to children, and maintain
that consumers can more easily identify the overall nutritional value of
milk products that are flavored with non-nutritive sweeteners if the
labels do not include such claims. Further, the petitioners assert that
consumers do not recognize milk—including flavored milk—as necessarily
containing sugar. Accordingly, the petitioners state that milk flavored
with non-nutritive sweeteners should be labeled as milk without further
claims so that consumers can “more easily identify its overall
nutritional value.”
As to the additional dairy standards, IDFA and NMPF state that administrative efficiency counsels in favor of similar changes. As long as FDA is dedicating resources to amending the standard of identity for milk, they argue, the Agency should also amend the standards for these products at the same time. They state that it is most efficient to consider all of the proposals together. According to the petition, the requested changes to the additional dairy standards present the same issues as the milk standard, and it is therefore appropriate to consider all of the requested changes together.
https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/02/20/2013-03835/flavored-milk-petition-to-amend-the-standard-of-identity-for-milk-and-17-additional-dairy-products#h-10
