FDA To Health Food Companies: The Word ‘Healthy’ Has An Actual Meaning

Kind bars are quite tasty, but are they healthy? Sure, they’re made from ostensibly healthy ingredients like nuts and dried fruit, but some bars also have ingredients like chocolate and peanut butter. The Food and Drug Administration sent the company a warning letter about their use of the word “healthy” to describe their snacks on the label.

Of course the FDA has rules about who can plaster the word “healthy” on their packaging: they also have rules about which products are allowed to call themselves peanut butter and ice cream. Unlike“natural,” which seems to be a meaningless marketing buzzword when it comes to food, the FDA will catch up with companies that label their products as “healthy.” Eventually.

In the case of Kind’s products, it was their saturated fat content that caught the FDA’s attention.

In accordance with 21 CFR 101.65(d)(2), you may use the term “healthy” as an implied nutrient content claim on the label or in the labeling of a food provided that the food, among other things, is “low saturated fat” as defined in 21 CFR 101.62(c)(2)

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