A Short History of Nutrition Labels
Ah, nutrition labels.
We all have a vague idea of what they look like: long white rectangles on the back of most food packages, telling us the supposed amount of servings as well as the macros and micros we’ll find in each of said servings.
But does anyone really know what they’re looking at? What is a serving and who decided it was only five chips? What does 12% of vitamin D mean?
We’re going to spend the next few newsletters talking about nutrition labels, starting with their history!
Before the 1960s
There’s very little history to recount from before the 1960s.
Something that will come into play later is the FDA’s 1938 passage of the FD&C Act, prohibiting “explicit discussion of disease or health on food labels.”
From the 1940s to the 60s, the FDA considered food labels with calorie and/or sodium content information to be for “special dietary uses.” These foods were made to meet the dietary needs caused by various health conditions.
According to this study on nutrition labels, there was limited interest in nutrition labeling, as most meals were homemade with basic ingredients.
However, as processed foods became more popular, consumers wanted nutrition labeling to help them understand these products.
The 60s-70s: The Beginning of Voluntary Labeling
In response to the rise in processed foods in the marketplace, along with the rise in consumer interest in nutrition, it was recommended in 1969 that the FDA create a system for identifying the nutritional qualities of food.
The FDA got to work, proposing a format for nutrition information on packaged food labels in 1972 after a few years of research and input from nutritionists, consumer groups, and the food industry.
In 1973, the regulations of this format were finalized. Nutrition labels on FDA-regulated foods must include:
Number of calories
Grams of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats
Percent of the U.S. RDA of protein, vitamins A and C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, calcium, and iron
Providing this information was voluntary, except when nutrition claims were made or when nutrients were added to the food.
Not many changes were made to these regulations for the next decade.
The Surge of Consumer Interest in Nutrition
The 1970s and 80s saw additional surges of increased interest and awareness in the relationship between health and nutrition. People began to pay more attention to what was in their food and went into their bodies.
Food manufacturers recognized this increased interest and found some unsavory ways to respond, making new and undefined claims on the labels of products. These claims stated or implied “…something about the special value of the food, such as ‘extremely low in saturated fat’.”
Along with nutritional claims, some food manufacturers wanted to make claims about the health benefits of their foods. As mentioned earlier, this was prohibited in 1938 by the FD&C Act, which states that a food claiming to prevent, cure, or treat any disease or symptom was considered to be misbranded or an illegal drug.
The Kellogg Company challenged this act in 1984, working with the National Cancer Institute, when they began using the back panel of a high-fiber breakfast cereal to link fiber consumption to a possible reduction in the risk of certain cancers.
No regulatory actions were taken against Kellogg, prompting other companies to begin making health claims as well.
Further Policy Change
The food industry’s new marketing tactics, met with no resistance from regulatory agencies, soon led to charges that the government was tolerating confusing, deceptive, and potentially harmful claims.
In 1990, the FDA published a proposal that introduced criteria that food products had to meet to make health claims on the food labels. This proposal included:
offering more flexibility in claims on foods that could be used to reduce/maintain body weight/calorie intake
Establishing policies concerning the fortification of foods
Including sodium content in nutrition labeling
Separately, In July of 1990, the FDA “proposed the mandatory listing of calories, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrate, fiber, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium, and iron.”
It was suggested that labeling of added sugar content also be required, but the FDA chose not to include this element.
To provide consumers with the most up-to-date information on health and nutrition, it was recommended that the FDA adopt regulations requiring uniform nutrition labeling for nearly all packaged foods. In addition, it was recommended that the FDA and USDA should define descriptors, like “good source of,'' and “high in,” in terms of nutrients like sodium, fat, cholesterol, and micronutrients.
Today’s Nutrition Label (the 1990s)
In November of 1990, these policy proposals and recommendations resulted in the passage of the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA).
This act gave the FDA authority to require nutrition labels on most packaged food and to specify what nutrients should be listed.
It wasn’t until 1993 that final regulations were published, mandating the Nutrition Facts panel on the back of packaged foods.
Required nutrients included:
Calories
calories from fat, total fat, and saturated fat
cholesterol
sodium
total carbohydrate
dietary fiber
sugars
protein
vitamins A and C, calcium, and iron
Optional nutrients that could be added were:
calories from saturated fat
polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids
potassium
soluble and insoluble fiber
sugar alcohols
other carbohydrates
any vitamins and minerals for which RDIs were established
Labeling of vitamins and minerals was required if they were added to the product or claims were made that related to their content
The Nutrition Facts label was officially introduced in May of 1994, though changes have been made since then.
Updates and Additions
Updates and additions were made to the Nutrition Facts label a few times, but the most recent changes happened in 2020. Here are some of the changes:
Serving sizes were updated to reflect the current habits of consumers
Calorie information is larger and bolded text
“Calories from fat” has been removed
Added sugars have been added
Vitamin D and potassium replaced Vitamins A & C
These updates are intended to make nutrition labeling easier to use and understand. The goals of nutrition labeling continue to be keeping the consumer informed and providing information that will help them make the best choices for their nutrition and health.
Okay, the history of the nutrition label might not be as brief or concise as I originally thought, but it’s interesting to see the way scientific research interests the public and how government agencies and large corporations try to respond to these interests.
Next week, we’ll be looking more closely at the nutrition label itself!
Photo Credit: FDA.gov Changes to the Nutrition Facts Label