House Resolution 117 - Introduced HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 117 BY INGELS , LATHAM , BERGAN , A. MEYER , FISHER , JONES , JENEARY , GERHOLD , BACON , BROWN-POWERS , BLOOMINGDALE , GOBBLE , BAXTER , BUSH , MOORE , and SMITH A Resolution urging the United States Food and Drug 1 Administration to take action necessary to improve 2 labeling of milk and other dairy foods. 3 WHEREAS, in December 2020, based on recommendations 4 by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, the 5 United States Department of Agriculture and the 6 United States Department of Health and Human Services 7 published the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for 8 Americans; and 9 WHEREAS, since it was first published in 1980, 10 the Dietary Guidelines for Americans have provided 11 Americans science-based advice on what to eat and drink 12 to promote health, reduce risk of chronic disease, and 13 meet nutrient needs; and 14 WHEREAS, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for 15 Americans finds that consistent evidence demonstrates 16 that a healthy dietary pattern is associated with 17 beneficial outcomes for all-cause mortality, 18 cardiovascular disease, overweight and obesity, type 2 19 diabetes, bone health, and certain types of cancer; and 20 WHEREAS, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for 21 Americans finds healthy dietary patterns feature milk 22 and dairy products which are an important part of a 23 healthy diet for both children and adults, contributing 24 sources of critical nutrients for human health, 25 -1- LSB 5853YH (5) 89 da/rn 1/ 5

H.R. 117 including vitamin D, calcium, and potassium; and 1 WHEREAS, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for 2 Americans finds current inadequate intake of 3 nutrient-dense foods and beverages has resulted 4 in underconsumption of these nutrients and is a 5 public health concern for the general United States 6 population; and 7 WHEREAS, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for 8 Americans recommends that milk and dairy products 9 together with other sources of nutrient-dense foods 10 account for 85 percent of a person’s calories; and 11 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary 12 Guidelines for Americans, most Americans are not 13 meeting recommended intake for the dairy food 14 group; and 15 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary 16 Guidelines for Americans, the gap between recommended 17 and current intake of dairy widens throughout life 18 stages and the age-related decrease in intake of 19 dairy foods for youth ages 2 to 18 is “notable and 20 concerning”; and 21 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 dietary 22 guidelines for Americans, overall, approximately 23 90 percent of the entire population of the United 24 States does not meet the daily dairy intake 25 recommendation; and 26 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary 27 Guidelines for Americans, calcium and vitamin D 28 are important at any age, that adolescents have an 29 increased need for these nutrients to support accrual 30 -2- LSB 5853YH (5) 89 da/rn 2/ 5

H.R. 117 of bone mass, and that adults should give particular 1 attention to consuming adequate amounts of dairy foods 2 with these nutrients to promote optimal bone health and 3 prevent the onset of osteoporosis; and 4 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary 5 Guidelines for Americans, close to 30 percent of men 6 and 60 percent of women older than age 19 do not 7 consume enough calcium, and more than 90 percent do not 8 consume enough vitamin D; and 9 WHEREAS, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary 10 Guidelines for Americans, dietary patterns that do 11 not meet recommended consumption amounts for food 12 groups and subgroups which include sources of calcium 13 and vitamin D, such as milk and other dairy foods, 14 contribute to low intake of these nutrients; and 15 WHEREAS, even though the average consumption of 16 milk and other dairy foods falls short of amounts 17 recommended by the United States Department of 18 Agriculture and the United States Department of 19 Health and Human Services, on average, across calorie 20 levels milk and other dairy foods still contribute 21 approximately 68 percent of calcium, 76 percent of 22 vitamin D, and 31 percent of magnesium; and 23 WHEREAS, the amount of calcium per calorie is lower 24 for most plant-based alternative milk products and to 25 obtain the amount of calcium contained in one cup of 26 imitation nonfat fluid milk alternatives derived from 27 a plant, the portion size and calorie intake must be 28 greater; and 29 WHEREAS, similarly, imitation dairy products, 30 -3- LSB 5853YH (5) 89 da/rn 3/ 5

H.R. 117 such as plant-based products derived from rice, nuts, 1 soybeans, hemp, coconut, algae, and other items that 2 are advertised using names such as milk, yogurt, and 3 cheese, often do not provide the same nutrition content 4 as real cheese and yogurt derived from dairy cows; and 5 WHEREAS, in recent years, a proliferation of 6 imitation dairy products have entered into the 7 marketplace which are often labeled as “milk” which 8 is misleading to consumers regarding their nutrition 9 profile; and 10 WHEREAS, recent survey data indicates that many 11 consumers believe that imitation dairy products have as 12 much or more protein value than milk, when the protein 13 value of those products is actually less; and 14 WHEREAS, the United States Food and Drug 15 Administration is charged to protect consumers and 16 enhance public health, including by regulating how food 17 products are labeled; and 18 WHEREAS, regulations promulgated by the United 19 States Food and Drug Administration define milk and 20 cream as the “lacteal secretion, practically free from 21 colostrum, obtained by the complete milking of one or 22 more healthy cows” (21 C.F.R. §131.110); and 23 WHEREAS, this definition further applies to 24 milk used to create other dairy products, including 25 yogurt and cheese (21 C.F.R. parts 131 and 133); NOW 26 THEREFORE, 27 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That 28 the Iowa House of Representatives urges the United 29 States Food and Drug Administration to take action 30 -4- LSB 5853YH (5) 89 da/rn 4/ 5

H.R. 117 necessary to enforce its regulations and better inform 1 consumers that the proliferation of imitation dairy 2 products currently mislabeled as milk be required to 3 better distinguish those items as nonmilk sources with 4 a nutritional deficit; and 5 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this 6 Resolution be sent to the United States Commissioner 7 of Food and Drugs, the President and Secretary of the 8 United States Senate, the Speaker and Clerk of the 9 United States House of Representatives, and to the 10 members of Iowa’s congressional delegation. 11 -5- LSB 5853YH (5) 89 da/rn 5/ 5