U S Government Accountability Office

Food Labeling U S Government Accountability Office

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees federal requirements to prohibit false or misleading food labels; the Federal Trade Commission enforces the prohibition against false or misleading advertising. By statute, health claims on food labels must have significant scientific agreement, but in 2002, in response to a court decision, FDA decided to allow qualified health claims with less scientific support. Structure/function claims refer to a foods effect on body structure or function and are also used on food. Congress directed GAO to study FDAs implementation of qualified health claims for food. GAO examined (1) the results of FDAs efforts to allow the use of qualified health claims and oversight of these claims and (2) consumers understanding of the claims. GAO also examined FDAs oversight of structure/function claims. GAO reviewed FDA documents and consumer studies and interviewed stakeholders from health, medical, industry, and consumer groups.