Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., said that the agency plans to issue new guidance related to use of the term “milk” for marketing and labeling of non-dairy products such as soy, rice, coconut and almond products.
The guidance would provide clarity on how the standard of identity for milk applies to non-dairy foods, according to POLITICO, a Washington, D.C., policy publication.
“There will be people who make a counter argument that almond milk should be able to call itself milk, but we do have a standard of identity and I do intend to enforce that,” Commissioner Gottlieb said, speaking to audience members attending a POLITICO event in Washington.
He added that the agency’s first step would be opening a period for gathering public comments and estimated that the process for developing guidance would take close to a year to complete.
Once the agency releases the details on its action, the dairy industry will have an opportunity to analyze the proposal and provide comments.