Any food product labeled on or after Jan. 1, 2006, must comply with The FDA's Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act. Allergens must be listed in plain English: Milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts and soybeans. Foods products that are produced and labeled prior to this date, and are part of a firm's inventory, may be distributed in interstate commerce after Jan. 1 until the product inventory is exhausted. A copy of Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA), including its specific labeling requirements, is at www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/alrgact.html .

The trans fatty acid final rule requires the listing of trans fat in the nutrition label of all foods that are introduced for entry into interstate commerce on or after Jan. 1. Conventional foods that are introduced into interstate commerce prior to Jan. 1 are not affected. The trans fatty acids labeling final rule is available at http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/fr03711a.html

Stephen F. Hall, author, Author -“From Kitchen to Market.”