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Legislation Banning Use Of Dairy Terms On Non-Dairy Foods Reintroduced

Bipartisan legislation was reintroduced in both the House and Senate Thursday that would ban the use of dairy terms on non-dairy alternatives.

The Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, milk and cheese to Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act (DAIRY PRIDE Act) was introduced in the Senate by US Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Jim Risch (R-ID), and is being cosponsored by Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Angus King (I-ME); and in the House by US Reps. Peter Welch (D-VT) and Mike Simpson (R-ID), where it has more than two dozen co-sponsors, according to Welch. The DAIRY PRIDE Act had also been introduced in both the House and Senate two years ago, but was never passed.

The DAIRY PRIDE Act would require the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue guidance for nationwide enforcement of mislabeled dairy alternatives within 90 days and require the agency to report to Congress two years after enactment to hold the agency accountable.

Also on Thursday, Baldwin, Risch, Crapo, King and Leahy urged FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb and Deputy FDA Commissioner Frank Yiannas to move forward and “expeditiously enforce against imitation products that use dairy’s good name” for their own benefit.

Plant-based products “ought to be marketed based on their own characteristics and nutrient profiles, rather than using dairy’s good name, and established nutritional profile, to market products that are not standardized and do not meet the criteria of dairy terms set forth in the standards of identity,” the letter continued.

“Dairy farmers, cheese makers, milk bottlers and makers of other products — ranging from cultured dairy products like yogurt and kefir to ice cream — have waited far too long for FDA to enforce its existing rules, which they abide by each day. We appreciate your attention to this matter and look forward to steps to address this mislabeling as soon as possible,” the letter added.

The DAIRY PRIDE Act is supported by, among others, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA), Midwest Dairy Coalition, National Farmers Union, Cooperative Network, Dairy Business Association, and Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative.

“For too long, the FDA has turned a blind eye to the misbranding of imitation dairy products, despite the decades-old federal law that milk comes from animals, not vegetables or nuts. None of these imitators provides the same high quality and quantity of nutrition offered by real milk,” said Jim Mulhern, ...

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