Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday Act or the DAIRY PRIDE Act
This bill prohibits the sale of any food that uses the market name of a dairy product (such as milk, yogurt, or cream cheese) unless the food (1) is the milk of a hooved animal, (2) is derived from such milk, or (3) contains such milk as a primary ingredient.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 549 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 549
To require enforcement against misbranded milk alternatives.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 28, 2023
Ms. Baldwin (for herself, Mr. Risch, Ms. Collins, Mr. Welch, Mr. King,
Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Marshall, Ms. Smith, Mr. Lujan, and Mr.
Rounds) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require enforcement against misbranded milk alternatives.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Defending Against Imitations and
Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of
Dairy Everyday Act'' or the ``DAIRY PRIDE Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds as follows:
(1) Dairy products are an important part of a healthy diet
for both children and adults, according to the Dietary
Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025 (referred to in this
section as the ``Dietary Guidelines'') published by the
Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and
Human Services. The Dietary Guidelines state that most
Americans are not meeting recommended intake for the dairy food
group.
(2) Consumption of dairy foods provides numerous health
benefits, including lowering the risk of diabetes, metabolic
syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and obesity.
(3) The Dietary Guidelines state that dairy foods are
sources of critical nutrients for human health, including
vitamin D, calcium, and potassium, all of which are under
consumed by people of the United States. Even though average
consumption falls short of amounts recommended by the Food
Patterns of the Department of Agriculture, on average across
the calorie levels dairy foods still contribute about 68
percent of calcium, 76 percent of vitamin D, and 31 percent of
magnesium.
(4) Beginning at age 9 and persisting throughout every
subsequent life-stage, individuals in the United States on
average fail to meet the recommended amount of dairy intake for
their age group, according to the Dietary Guidelines. The
Dietary Guidelines note the gap between recommended and current
intake of dairy widens throughout life stages and find the age-
related decreasing intake of dairy for youth ages 2 through 18
to be ``notable and concerning''. Overall, approximately 90
percent of the entire population of the United States does not
meet the daily dairy intake recommendation.
(5) The Dietary Guidelines state that the nutrient
composition of dairy foods highlights the importance of
adequate consumption, finding this to be especially relevant
for the intake of calcium and vitamin D throughout an
individual's life. The Dietary Guidelines note that calcium and
vitamin D are important at any age, that adolescents have an
increased need for these nutrients to support accrual of bone
mass, and that adults should give particular attention to
consuming adequate amounts of foods with these nutrients to
promote optimal bone health and prevent the onset of
osteoporosis. Yet, close to 30 percent of men and 60 percent of
women older than age 19 do not consume enough calcium, and more
than 90 percent do not consume enough vitamin D. According to
the Dietary Guidelines, dietary patterns that do not meet
recommended consumption amounts for food groups and subgroups
which include sources of calcium and vitamin D, such as dairy
foods, contribute to low intake of these nutrients.
(6) The Dietary Guidelines state that many products sold as
``milks'' but made from plants (e.g., almond, rice, coconut,
oat, and hemp ``milks'') do not have an overall nutritional
content similar to real milk and that most have significantly
less protein than real milk and are not always fortified with
calcium and vitamin D. The amount of calcium per calorie is
lower for most plant-based alternative milk products. To obtain
the amount of calcium contained in one cup of nonfat fluid milk
from a plant-based milk alternative, the portion size and
calorie intake must be greater.
(7) Similarly, imitation dairy products, such as plant-
based products derived from rice, nuts, hemp, coconut, algae,
and other foods that imitate milk, yogurt, and cheese, often do
not provide the same nutrition content as real cheese and
yogurt derived from dairy cows.
(8) Plant-based products labeled as milk are misleading to
consumers.
(9) The Food and Drug Administration has regulations that
define milk and cream as the ``lacteal secretion, practically
free from colostrum, obtained by the complete milking of one or
more healthy cows'' (section 131.110 of title 21, Code of
Federal Regulations). This definition further applies to milk
used to create other dairy products, including yogurt and
cheese, as specified in sections 131 and 133 of title 21, Code
of Federal Regulations.
(10) Given the proliferation of plant-based products in the
marketplace that are mislabeled as milk despite the standard of
identity defined for this substance, enforcement by the Food
and Drug Administration against these practices should be
improved to avoid misleading consumers.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
No food may be introduced or delivered for introduction into
interstate commerce using a market name for a dairy product if the food
does not meet the criterion set forth for dairy products under
paragraph (z)(2) of section 403 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act (21 U.S.C. 343) (as added by section 4(a)).
SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT OF DEFINITION.
(a) In General.--Section 403 of the Federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 343) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(z)(1) If it uses a market name for a dairy product described in
subparagraph (3) and the food does not meet the criterion for being a
dairy product, as described in subparagraph (2).
``(2) For purposes of this paragraph, a food is a dairy product
only if the food is, contains as a primary ingredient, or is derived
from, the lacteal secretion, practically free from colostrum, obtained
by the complete milking of one or more hooved mammals.
``(3) A market name for a dairy product described in this
subparagraph means the dairy product terms described in parts 131 and
133 of subchapter B of chapter I of title 21, Code of Federal
Regulations, and sections 135.110, 135.115, and 135.140 of title 21,
Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations), or any
other term for which the Secretary has promulgated a standard of
identity with respect to a food that is formulated with a dairy product
(as described in subparagraph (2)) as the primary ingredient.''.
(b) Guidance.--
(1) New guidance.--The Secretary of Health and Human
Services, acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs,
shall--
(A) not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, issue draft guidance on how
enforcement of the amendment made by subsection (a)
will be carried out; and
(B) not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, issue final guidance on such
enforcement.
(2) Effect on certain previous guidance.--Effective on the
date of enactment of this Act, any guidance issued by the
Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the
Commissioner of Food and Drugs, that is not consistent with
paragraph (z) of section 403 of the Federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 343), as added by subsection (a), shall
have no force or effect.
(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services,
acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall report to
Congress on enforcement actions taken under paragraph (z) of section
403 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 343), as
amended by this Act, including warnings issued pursuant to such
paragraph and penalties assessed under section 303 of such Act (21
U.S.C. 333) with respect to such paragraph. If food that is misbranded
under section 403(z) is offered for sale in interstate commerce at the
time of such report, the Commissioner of Food and Drugs shall include
in such report an updated plan for enforcement with respect to such
food.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
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