News
05/02/1994

<TITLE>Public Awareness Campaign for the New Food Label</TITLE>
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P94-9                                  Food and Drug Administration
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                  Judith Foulke (202) 205-4144

     The Department of Health and Human Services' Food and Drug
Administration today announced a major, nationwide public awareness
campaign for the new food label.
     It will feature public service announcements on network and
local television, the Goodyear Blimp, Times Square's famed
electronic billboard, baseball stadium scoreboards across the
country and stamp cancellations in five major cities.
     "Americans are becoming increasingly more health conscious and
we're demanding more information," said HHS Secretary Donna E.
Shalala.  "The new food label tells us the kind of information we
need to make informed, healthy choices about the foods we eat."
     Under the provisions of the Nutrition Labeling and Education
Act (NLEA) of 1990, food companies must start using the new food
label on packaged foods beginning Sunday, May 8.  Foods labeled
before that day can use the old label.
     A key element of the new label is the "Nutrition Facts" panel
that gives consumers significant information about the nutritional
content of foods.
     "The Nutrition Facts panel is designed to be easy to read and
easy to use," said FDA Commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D.  "You
don't need to use a calculator.  You don't need to understand grams
and calories.  The % Daily Value column tells consumers in bold
print whether a food is low or high in the key nutrients:  fat,
saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium and carbohydrates." 
                             -MORE-

                                              Page 2, P94-9, NLEA
     In addition to the "Nutrition Facts" panel, label claims like
"lite" or "reduced fat" now must meet standard definitions, and
health claims associating diet with reduced risk of disease can
only be made if based on scientific evidence.
     "The campaign is aimed at increasing the public's awareness of
the new labels, which many companies have been using on their
packages for several months," said Philip R. Lee, M.D., HHS
assistant secretary for health and director of the U.S. Public
Health Service.  "The food industry estimates that most foods in
the marketplace already have the label and this number will
increase in the coming months as foods previously labeled are used
up." 
     The campaign features 15-second and 30-second video spots that
networks and local affiliates have been asked to run as public
service announcements.  With the "Nutrition Facts" panel as a
backdrop, individuals flash across the screen square dancing,
playing tennis, doing aerobics and working in an office.
     "Our message is simple: There is something for everybody in
this new label," Kessler said.  "Everyone can use the information
to make the choices they believe will promote their health."
     Several major league baseball teams have volunteered to use
the PSA on their scoreboard replay screens as well as to advertise
the campaign's slogan:  "The New Food Label -- Check It Out." 
Also, baseball superstars Kirby Puckett of the Minnesota Twins and
Roger Clemens of the Boston Red Sox filmed a 30-second PSA with 
                             -MORE-

                                      Page 3, P94-9, NLEA
Shalala, and that will also be used on baseball scoreboards.
     "We are excited by the new food label and we want the public
to share that excitement.  That's why we have looked for the
unusual and unexpected to make people aware of this new tool," 
Kessler said.
     During the next year, the three Goodyear blimps will flash the
slogan "The New Food Label -- Check It Out" on their electronic
billboards as they fly around the country.  The Times Square
"zipper" will feature the message during early May.  In Atlanta,
Chicago, Denver, San Francisco and Washington, D.C, postage stamp
cancellations will carry the message "Check Out The New Food Label
Today!" for the next six months.
     FDA has also made artwork, featuring the "Nutrition Facts"
panel, available to the retail grocery industry so that stores can
emblazon the label on grocery bags and use it in other promotions.
TV chefs have been provided aprons showing the "Nutrition Facts"
panel, and Graham Kerr will show consumers how they can use the new
food label in meal planning during upcoming segments of his new PBS
cooking series.
     The new food labels are easily identified by the "Nutrition
Facts" panel, usually appearing on the back or side of a package. 
The panel shows consumers:
     *  the size of a single serving in household terms and its   
        calories
     *  the amounts per serving of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, 
                             -MORE-
                                              Page 4, P94-9, NLEA 
         sodium, carbohydrates, and protein -- the nutrients most 
         relevant to the health of today's consumers
     The new food label began appearing on food products last year
when food companies began relabeling products to meet the May 8,
1994, NLEA deadline.
     New food labels must be used on packages of meat and poultry
products beginning July 6, 1994.
     Since passage of NLEA, FDA and the U.S. Department of
Agriculture have worked with many industry and consumer groups to
develop educational programs and materials for consumers.
Information about these public and private education efforts can be
obtained by writing to:
     FDA/USDA Food Labeling Education Information Center
     National Agricultural Library
     10301 Baltimore Blvd., Room 304
     Beltsville, MD  20705-2351

     FDA is one of eight Public Health Service agencies within HHS.
                                
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