Lawyers and former regulators spoke on a panel at the Prime Label Consultants’ Food Label Conference about the growth of the latest innovations in food ingredients and technology, including edible insects, CBD and cell-cultured meat. The experts discussed the factors igniting these trends, current regulatory gray areas and how government agencies could reform these areas in the future.
One of the hottest topics in the food industry today is CBD. There are still many regulatory questions around the ingredient in foods and beverages, but the recent passage of the farm bill has given producers a confidence boost and provided more clarity for hemp and CBD-infused products.
Jonathan Havens, a partner at Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr and a former regulatory counsel for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said at the panel that CBD is increasingly appearing in the food industry.
“People don’t know exactly what it means, but they know that their customers want it in everything,” Havens said.
A recent study conducted by High Yield Insights found 40% of American consumers who are 21 years of age or older would try CBD. Smaller food companies have already jumped on the opportunity by putting products on the market with CBD, while Big Food is looking for opportunities and keeping an eye on the trend.
But CBD is still considered illegal by the FDA. The agency is having a public hearing in May and Havens said that could show more of what is to come for the ingredient in the future. However, there are other ways that CBD regulation could come sooner. Congress could act, he said, or the FDA could look at a hybrid approach, regulating low levels of CBD in food and high levels of CBD in pharmaceuticals.
“Clients always say to me, ‘We just really want FDA to clarify its position on CBD.’ And I say, ‘No, you want FDA to change its position on CBD because clarifying it would mean digging their heels in and saying it is still illegal, that you can’t put it in food or dietary supplements,’ ” he said.
There are some safer ways to get CBD products into the market today by sourcing and testing the ingredient extensively and then not making health claims on the product, he said. FDA has only issued warning letters to companies that are making aggressive claims on their products, Havens said.
“There is a way to do it now, not totally risk free, but there are ways to market these products,” he said.
Beetles, grasshoppers, locusts and crickets
CBD isn’t the only ingredient that has become a hot button issue in the food space. The global edible insects market is predicted to surpass $522 million by 2023, with beetles, grasshoppers, locusts and crickets comprising much of the growth, according to Global Market Insights.
Source: Food Dive
