Dietitians: Please join Dietitians in Gluten and Gastrointestinal Disorders (DIGID) and send a letter to FDA voicing your displeasure about the lack of enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule

Dietitians: Please join Dietitians in Gluten and Gastrointestinal Disorders (DIGID) and send a letter to FDA voicing your displeasure about the lack of enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule

To my fellow dietitians, Gluten Free Watchdog recently launched a letter writing campaign to Food and Drug Administration personnel regarding the lack of enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule. If you work with consumers with celiac disease or non-celiac wheat sensitivity, please make your voice heard by joining DIGID and sending emails and/or letters to the individuals included in the contact list below. The text of the letter sent by DIGID is also pasted below. Please write your own letter or simply cut and paste the DIGID letter into an email writing at the top, “I support the statement below from DIGID.” 

Thank you!

Contact information for HHS and FDA personnel

Mr. Alex M. Azar II

Office of the Secretary

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Hubert H. Humphrey Building

200 Independence Avenue, S.W.

Washington, D.C. 20201

Secretary@HHS.gov

Stephen M. Hahn, MD

FDA Commissioner

Food and Drug Administration

White Oak Building One

10903 New Hampshire Avenue; Room 2217

Silver Spring, MD 20993

Stephen.Hahn@fda.hhs.gov

Susan Mayne, PhD

Director

CFSAN

5001 Campus Drive

College Park, MD 20740-3835

Susan.Mayne@fda.hhs.gov

Claudine Kavanaugh

Director, Office of Nutrition & Food Labeling

CFSAN

5001 Campus Drive

College Park, MD 20740-3835 

claudine.kavanaugh@fda.hhs.gov

Megan Velez

(Acting) Director, Office of Regulations & Policy

CFSAN

5001 Campus Drive

College Park, MD 20740-3835

Megan.Velez@fda.hhs.gov

William A. Correll, Jr.,

Director, Office of Compliance

CFSAN

5001 Campus Drive

College Park, MD 20740-3835

william.correll@cfsan.fda.gov

Robin Mckinnon

Senior advisor for nutrition policy

CFSAN

5001 Campus Drive

College Park, MD 20740-3835

Robin.McKinnon@fda.hhs.gov

Text of Letter from DIGID

Dear,

On behalf of the Dietitians in Gluten and Gastrointestinal Disorders (DIGID), a sub-unit of the Medical Nutrition Practice Group (MNPG), within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), we are writing to express our concerns regarding the ongoing lack of enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule within the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

As Registered Dietitians caring for people with celiac disease and non-celiac wheat sensitivity, we are on the front lines helping patients navigate labeling reading the gluten-free diet.  We are also now fielding questions about why gluten-containing ingredients are listed on foods labeled gluten-free. Our patients have expressed to us that they feel like they can’t trust the gluten-free label due to this specific issue, and many wonder why the FDA isn’t taking action to protect them.

Foods labeled gluten-free yet containing ingredients not allowed under the rule have been reported to FDA consumer complaint coordinators, CAERS, and other FDA personnel via Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC. Specific examples of this facial misbranding are listed here: https://bit.ly/2tMOhh9 as well as on the second page of this letter. Additional examples of misbranding can be found on the supplement to the Citizen Petition submitted by Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC in 2018. This supplement can be accessed here: https://bit.ly/2OFSM4v

Unfortunately, the continued lax enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule by the FDA is putting our patients’ short-term and long-term health at risk. As health care professionals dealing with this issue daily, we are requesting immediate, increased enforcement by the FDA of their own gluten-free labeling rule.

We would be happy to provide further information regarding these issues. Please do not hesitate to contact me at [Redacted].

Respectfully,


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Comments (2)

  • Carol Brunzell Reply

    Dear Mr Azar and colleagues,

    On behalf of the Dietitians in Gluten and Gastrointestinal Disorders (DIGID), a sub-unit of the Medical Nutrition Practice Group (MNPG), within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), we are writing to express our concerns regarding the ongoing lack of enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule within the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

    As Registered Dietitians caring for people with celiac disease and non-celiac wheat sensitivity, we are on the front lines helping patients navigate labeling reading the gluten-free diet. We are also now fielding questions about why gluten-containing ingredients are listed on foods labeled gluten-free. Our patients have expressed to us that they feel like they can’t trust the gluten-free label due to this specific issue, and many wonder why the FDA isn’t taking action to protect them.

    Foods labeled gluten-free yet containing ingredients not allowed under the rule have been reported to FDA consumer complaint coordinators, CAERS, and other FDA personnel via Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC. Specific examples of this facial misbranding are listed here: https://bit.ly/2tMOhh9 as well as on the second page of this letter. Additional examples of misbranding can be found on the supplement to the Citizen Petition submitted by Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC in 2018. This supplement can be accessed here: https://bit.ly/2OFSM4v

    Unfortunately, the continued lax enforcement of the gluten-free labeling rule by the FDA is putting our patients’ short-term and long-term health at risk. As health care professionals dealing with this issue daily, we are requesting immediate, increased enforcement by the FDA of their own gluten-free labeling rule.

    We would be happy to provide further information regarding these issues. Please do not hesitate to contact me at [Redacted].

    Respectfully,
    Carol Brunzell

    February 24, 2020 at 11:57 pm
    • Tricia Thompson Reply

      Hi Carol, Thank you. Did you email your letter to FDA personnel included on the list?

      February 25, 2020 at 2:47 pm

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