FDA Updates Labeling Rules to Protect People With Sesame Allergy
Effective January 1, 2023, sesame has been added to the list of major food allergens according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The change is a result of the FASTER Act (Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research), which became law in April 2021.Sesame joins eight other major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans. The original list dates back to 2004 as a response to the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act.This update is “a game changer” for people with a sesame allergy, says Ruchi S. Gupta, MD, MPH, a professor of pediatrics and director of the Institute for Public Health and Medicine at the Center for Food Allergy and Asthma at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago.“Now if a product contains…