5@5: Kind petitions FDA to update food label regulations | Proposed law would require drug test for SNAP benefits

Kind bars wants the FDA to change how it regulates food labels

Snack bar company Kind filed a petition Wednesday requesting that the FDA to alter the way it evaluates food labels. The company was recently pressured by the administration to remove the word “healthy” from its label due to excessive amounts of total or saturated fat in its products. Kind subsequently made the argument that its bars use nuts high in healthy fats, and that the agency is enforcing scientifically outdated standards. Read more at CNBC …

Proposed law requires passing drug test to get food stamps

A recently proposed law would require some Alabama residents to begin taking drug tests prior to receiving food stamps. Tests would be administered “under reasonable suspicion that the person uses drugs,” and refusing to take the test or attempts to delay the process would result in ineligibility for SNAP benefits. Read more at WTHR …

Study: US consumer attitudes about aquaculture not as bad as thought

The notion that U.S. consumers prefer wild fish and seafood over the farmed variety was contested in a recent survey showing that most might not actually have a preference. 25 percent of participants even stated that farmed fish and seafood had a better taste and texture, although consumers are still largely concerned about pesticides, antibiotics and pollution in regards to on-land and near-shore raised aquaculture. Read more at Undercurrent News …

Mayor Bill de Blasio enacts Meatless Mondays across all New York City schools

In the upcoming 2019-20 schoolyear, all students in New York City boroughs will have access to vegetarian breakfast and lunch options starting in September. De Blasio and city health officials have stated that the move is a way to “create more balance in [students’] lives,” as well as to address the threat of global warming. Read more at AMNY …

Amazon walks back vendor purge as sellers look to reduce dependence on the platform

After the company’s abrupt decision to stop filling weekly purchase orders from tens of thousands of vendors on its wholesale business platform, vendors received an email stating that only Brand Registry-enrolled vendors will have access to automatic purchase-order fulfillment on the platform going forward. This move may make it easier for Amazon to offload the kinds of low-quality, unprofitable vendors that often sell counterfeit products. Read more at Digiday …