FDA to Redefine Healthy

The Food and Drug Administration [FDA] is currently evaluating whether to expand their definition of healthy, including more of the fats found in nuts. The FDA’s decision to reevaluate their regulations comes from their recent disagreement with KIND Healthy Snacks, maker of Kind Bars, over whether or not their nut filled protein bars should be qualified as healthy.
“I think it’s a little over the top to take the label off something with nuts in it just because they’re high in fat,” Sarah Meyers ‘19 said.
Current regulations state that if a product would like to receive the label of healthy, it
must be low in fat, saturated fat, sodium, cholesterol and contain beneficial nutrients, such as vitamin C or calcium. This poses a problem for snack bars and health foods that contain nuts, which are high in protein, as well as high unsaturated fats that many consumers believe to be healthy. Currently, the FDA differentiates between healthy and unhealthy fats.
“We believe now is an opportune time to reevaluate regulations concerning nutrient content claims, generally, including the term ‘healthy,'” the FDA said in a statement to the Wall Street Journal.
The FDA has currently allowed Kind to keep using the label of healthy, but industry standards must still be evaluated.
“We very much hope the FDA will change the definition of healthy, so that you don’t end up in a silly situation where a toaster pastry or sugary cereal can be considered healthy and a piece of salmon or bunch of almonds cannot,” Daniel Lubetzky, Kind’s Chief Executive said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal .
There is currently no timeline for when the decision will be made.