Foodmakers will have three years to phase out the use of partially hydrogenated oils, the primary source of artificial trans fats, said the Food and Drug Administration. The agency said “a thorough review of the scientific evidence” showed the materials should not be part of the diet. The agency tentatively ruled in 2013 that artificial trans fats should be banned. It said it finalized that determination after considering public comments on the issue.
Consumption of trans fats has fallen by 78 percent since 2006, when the FDA required food companies to list trans-fat content on the Nutrition Facts label on food packages, due to reformulation of foods and consumer decisions to avoid the substances. “While trans fat intake has significantly decreased, the current intake remains a public health concern. The Institute of Medicine recommends that consumption of trans fat be as low as possible while consuming a nutritionally adequate diet,” said the FDA.
During the phase-out, foodmakers can alter their recipes or petition the FDA to allow them to continue to use partially hydrogenated oils in specific foods. After the three-year period, the oils cannot be added to food without FDA approval.
Trans fats have been used since the 1950s to increase the shelf-life and flavor of many baked and frozen foods. They were used in foods ranging from margarine and coffee creamers to snacks and refrigerated biscuits.
However, studies “have consistently linked trans fat consumption to heart disease,” says the FDA. A 2002 study by the Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academy of Sciences, found a direct correlation between consumption of trans fat and increased levels of cholesterol in the blood stream “and, therefore, increased risk of heart disease.”
The administration says “the move will reduce coronary heart disease and prevent thousands of fatal heart attacks every year,” said the Associated Press. “The Grocery Manufacturers Association, the main trade group for the food industry, is working with companies on a petition that would formally ask the FDA if it can say there is a ‘reasonable certainty of no harm’ from some specific uses of the fats.” Politico said class-action attorneys “are eager to use the ruling – before it takes effect – to file lawsuits against deep-pocketed food companies that have continued to use trans fat, even as the rest of the industry has masterfully reduced its use of trans fat by some 85 percent.”