Natural products industry’s biggest moments of 2015
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The year of FSMA (finally). The year of the attack on supplements. The year a GMO apple and salmon were approved. These are the top natural products industry people, events, deals and controversies covered by newhope360.com in 2015.
What becomes the biggest supplements story of the year starts in February when the New York attorney general's office accuses four large retailers of selling adulterated herbal supplements. The events that unfold in the following months call to question the safety of botanicals as well as the appropriateness of DNA barcoding, the method of testing used by the NYAG. Here’s a month-by-month glance at what went down.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announces it will deregulate two varieties of non-browning genetically engineered apples trademarked under the name Arctic, making them the first commercially available GMO apples in the United States.
In a deal that’s illustrative of recent M&A trends, snack food company Mondelez (maker of Oreos, Chips Ahoy! and Tang) buys trusted allergen-free snack maker Enjoy Life Foods.
New dietary guideline recommendations from the U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee cite a diet abundant in plant-based foods as health-promoting, and diets heavy on sodium, meat and sugar as unhealthy. The report also alters its previous stance that vilified egg consumption.
A damning report from the cancer arm of the World Health Organization calls the herbicide glyphosate “probably carcinogenic to humans.”
A FDA warning letter sent to KIND is made public, citing the conscious company for mislabeling its products as "healthy" even though they contain ample fat. KIND responds by noting that almost all of the fat comes from heart-supportive nuts, and later submits a citizen petition to the agency asking it to revisit its regulations related to fat content and labeling a food "healthy.”
A week after 10 doctors ask Columbia University to remove Dr. Oz from its faculty, the TV doc devotes an episode of his show to addressing critics who accuse him of sensationalization and conflicts of interest.
Chipotle goes public with its pledge to be GMO free but faces backlash from industry and media over its sale of soda and meat likely raised with GMO feed. Things get incrementally worse for the fast-casual chain in August when a class-action lawsuit is filed against it, and again in November when E. coli and norovirus outbreaks are linked to food served at some of its restaurants.
In the face of increasing competition, slumping Whole Foods Market announces “a second growth vehicle” for its company in the form of a new tech- and value-oriented store concept set to debut in 2016. The retailer’s struggles continue throughout the year as it cuts more than 1,500 jobs in September and becomes the target of a New York Department of Consumer Affairs probe on store-packaged food pricing, which it eventually settles for $500,000.
SunOpta receives the first USDA Process Verified label for non-GMO, causing some brief confusion. The USDA did not create its own non-GMO verification standards and program; rather it verified a company’s own non-GMO practices for the first time.
Hormel Foods Corp. acquires Applegate, makers of natural and organic deli meats, burgers, cheeses, chicken and hot dogs, for $775 million. Although Applegate will continue to operate independently from Hormel, core natural consumers vocally disapprove of the transaction.
In a move that marks a clear sign that plant-based protein is here to stay, WhiteWave acquires Vega for $550 million.
The U.S. House of Representatives passes the voluntary GMO labeling bill known by opponents as the Deny Americans the Right to Know Act, but it fails to get through the Senate this year. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says he will bring stakeholders together for a meeting on GMO labeling in early 2016.
The debate over whether an eggless product can call itself mayo continues as the FDA issues a warning letter to Hampton Creek over the naming of its vegan spread Just Mayo. A few weeks later, an Associated Press story explores machinations by the government-sponsored American Egg Board to thwart Hampton Creek’s mission to tear down the egg industry by providing a plant-based substitute. The company eventually modifies its label to more clearly convey that the product doesn’t contain eggs.
More than four years after the Food Safety Modernization Act was signed into law, the FDA publishes several of the law’s final rules—two in September and three in November.
In an important decision for the industry, a New Jersey district court rules that Bayer did not make unsubstantiated claims about the benefits of its Phillips’ Colon Health probiotic supplement, shooting down a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission.
The supplement industry continues to take a beating as Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum sues GNC, alleging that the chain sold supplements spiked with the amphetamine-like compound BMPEA and picamilon. GNC issues a response saying it “stopped selling products with BMPEA and picamilon immediately upon learning indirectly, rather than from notice directed at GNC, that FDA did not view BMPEA and picamilon as legal dietary ingredients” and that the suit is without merit.
The Environmental Working Group launches a cosmetics safety verification program to educate and empower consumers while pushing personal care companies to clean up their ingredients.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration asks for public comment on whether it should define the term natural as used on food labels and, if so, how it should do so. The industry and the public have until May 10, 2016, to weigh in.
Five federal agencies led by the U.S. Department of Justice bring criminal and civil actions against more than 100 makers and marketers of supplements for making illegal products masqueraded as supplements and making deceptive claims about supplement ingredients. They also issue a warning against all supplement companies for not adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices and for selling pure powdered caffeine.
After a nearly 20-year wait, AquaBounty Technologies receives FDA approval for the AquAdvantage Salmon—a genetically engineered fish that can grow to market size more rapidly than non-GE salmon because it contains genes from a Chinook salmon and an ocean pout. Several retailers say they won’t sell it.
After a turbulent year that saw Boulder Brands post quarterly declines, lose its CEO and cut jobs, the company sells to Pinnacle Food in a deal worth $975 million.
In a move applauded by the major industry trade groups, the FDA elevates its dietary supplements division to the Office of Dietary Supplement Programs, signaling more attention and enforcement for supplement regulation.
In a move applauded by the major industry trade groups, the FDA elevates its dietary supplements division to the Office of Dietary Supplement Programs, signaling more attention and enforcement for supplement regulation.
Natural products industry’s biggest moments of 2015
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