FDA Issues New Rules on Gluten-Free Labeling of Foods

On August 13, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States published a final rule, titled "Gluten-Free Labeling of Fermented or Hydrolyzed Foods" to establish compliance requirements for "gluten-free" labeling of fermented or hydrolyzed foods or that contain fermented or hydrolyzed ingredients.

So far, no valid analytical method was identified and adopted by the FDA to detect and quantify the gluten protein content in terms of equivalent amounts of intact gluten proteins. Therefore, the FDA will evaluate the compliance of "gluten-free"-claimed foods by judging the records of the manufacturers of these kinds of foods. The scope is to verify that the potential for gluten cross-contact is under control, and, if not, measures of prevention are implemented, to prevent the introduction of gluten into the food during the manufacturing process.