The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will reevaluate what it calls "healthy" food after the maker of Kind fruit-and-nut bars complained that the current federal definition favors fat-free puddings and sugary cereals over nuts, avocados and salmon.
Kind had received a warning letter from the FDA last year saying their products were too high in saturated fat to be labeled as "healthy,"
Fox News reported.
The company argued that the fat content in its products comes from nuts and pointed out that FDA rules "prevent avocados and salmon from being labeled healthy, while allowing the term for fat-free puddings and sugary cereals," Fox News said.
The FDA will seek pubic input on the definition, according to
The Wall Street Journal.
According to the current definition, adopted in 1994, foods can only be labeled as "healthy" if they meet certain criteria for content of fat, saturated fat, sodium, cholesterol, and beneficial nutrients, such as vitamin C or Calcium, the Journal said, noting that foods such as Frosted Flakes or low-fat Pop-Tarts would meet those criteria.
"The problem, of course, is that the foodscape can change quickly, but FDA regulations change very slowly," said David Katz, director of the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center, according to the Journal.
The FDA agreed to allow Kind to use the terms "healthy and tasty" in descriptions of the company's philosophy separate from its nutrition information.
"It’s very energizing to feel that our voices were heard, and the FDA recognizes that the regulation didn’t really make sense," Kind CEO Daniel Lubetzsky said, according to
USA Today.
FDA spokeswoman Lauren Kotwicki said the agency's effort to redefine "healthy" was influenced by several factors, including new rules on the Nutrition Facts panel, new nutrition research, and a citizens' petition launched by Kind that received backing from four Democratic senators.
"In light of evolving nutrition research ... we believe now is an opportune time to reevaluate regulations concerning nutrient content claims, generally, including the term 'healthy,'" Kotwicki said, according to USA Today.
Twitter users shared mixed reactions to the debate.