Food Labeling; Calorie Labeling of Articles of Food in Vending Machines

To implement the vending machine labeling provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (Affordable Care Act), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is proposing requirements for providing calorie information for certain articles of food sold from vending machines. The Affordable Care Act, in part, amended the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) to, among other things, require that for an article of food sold from a vending machine that does not permit a prospective purchaser to examine the Nutrition Facts Panel before purchasing the article, or does not otherwise provide visible nutrition information at the point of purchase, and is operated by a person engaged in the business of owning or operating 20 or more vending machines, the vending machine operator must disclose the number of calories for the article of food. Vending machine operators not subject to the requirements of the Affordable Care Act may elect to be subject to the Federal requirements by registering with FDA. Providing calorie disclosures for food sold from vending machines would assist consumers in making healthier dietary choices.

Agency Contact: Daniel Y. Reese, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (HFS-820), Food and Drug Administration, 5100 Paint Branch Pkwy., College Park, MD 20740, 301-436-2371.