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Los granos de café en la determinación final se producen a partir de granos de café verde crudo importados a Canadá o a los Estados Unidos en su estado natural. Una vez en Canadá o en los Estados Unidos, los frijoles se tuestan y envasan. La CBP dictaminó que “tostar granos de café verde transforma sustancialmente los granos en un nuevo y diferente artículo de comercio”. La agencia emite resoluciones de país de origen “con el propósito de otorgar exenciones de ciertas restricciones de ‘Compre estadounidense’ en las leyes de los Estados Unidos o práctica “para la contratación pública.

Once in Canada or the US the beans are roasted and packaged. CBP ruled that “roasting green coffee beans substantially transforms the beans into a new and different article of commerce.” The agency issues country-of-origin rulings “for the purpose of granting waivers of certain ‘Buy American’ restrictions in United States law or practice” for government procurement.

Being issued a warning letter is stressful, but when you take the right steps, it can be far from detrimental.

Identify What Issues the FDA Has with Your Product

An FDA warning letter gives detail about alleged violations your company has made regarding your product(s), your marketing, your product label(s), etc. The first step to handling a warning letter is to break it down and determine what exactly your alleged violations were.

Determine What Needs to Change to Meet FDA Regulations

Sooner rather than later, you’ll need to hold a meeting with any key players in your business to determine what might need to change about the design or manufacture of your product, the marketing of your product, or anything else the FDA stated was violated in the warning letter. Some of these things could be simple changes like updating a label, while others could take time and resources. You’ll need to have an idea of exactly what it will take to meet regulations.

Write a Response to The Warning Letter

Once you’ve identified what you plan to do to satisfy the requirements set forth by the FDA, you’ll need to craft a well-thought-out response. Generally speaking, the more comprehensive the response, the more you’ll illustrate that your company is taking the FDA’s concerns seriously.

You want to avoid being confrontational in the letter and be sure to address each point of contention with an appropriate response about what you plan to change, how long it will take, and what additional steps you may be taking to resolve the issue. Often, a warning letter response requires the help of an experienced FDA lawyer.

Be Ready for A Follow-Up

Be prepared for a follow-up inspection by the FDA to ensure that you have indeed made the changes necessary to meet FDA regulations. Stick to the time frame you provided to them in your response and make sure to have any and all changes completed by that time.

Contact Us Today

If you received an FDA warning letter, don’t wait to take action. Get legal help today by calling our office.

The presence of Sildenafil, Tadalafil, and or Desmethyl Carbodenafil in Rhino 7 Platinum 5000, Papa Zen 3300, Fifty Shades 6000, and Grande X 5800, renders them unapproved drugs for which safety and efficacy have not been established and, therefore, subject to recall. For more information visit FDA’s website

In a Similar Recall:

Natures Supplement, Inc. is voluntarily recalling 260 bottles of VEGETABLE VIGRA, 200 mg capsules to the consumer level. FDA analysis found this product to be tainted with Sildenafil. Sildenafil is an FDA-approved drug for the treatment of erectile dysfunction, the presence of Sildenafil in the Vegetable Vigra product renders it an unapproved drug for which safety and efficacy have not been established, therefore subject to recall.

Risk Statement: Men with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease, may be on medications that are taken with these products could lower blood pressure to dangerous levels that could be life-threatening. To date, Natures Supplement, Inc. has not received any reports of adverse events related to this recall. For more information visit FDA’s website.

Certain requirements must be met in order to claim that your product is indeed organic. This is also true to put a USDA Organic label on your product. Here’s what you should know.

Does Your Product Need to Be Certified Organic?

If you sell a food product with organic ingredients, you may wonder if your product needs to be certified. In most cases, yes. If your product is not certified, you cannot make any claim that it is organic on the principal display panel. You also cannot use the label of USDA Organic. The only thing you can do to inform consumers that your product contains organic ingredients is to identify which ingredients are organic on the information panel. You may also claim a percent value in relation to how much organic material is used.

Requirements for USDA Organic Labeling

In order to use the USDA Organic label, your food product must meet the following three main requirements:

The product must include only allowed materials and none of the materials that are prohibited for use by the USDA in organic foods.

The product must be grown, manufactured, or produced without any of the methods that are excluded by the USDA for organic products. This includes, but is not limited to the use of sewage sludge, ionizing radiation, or genetically modified or engineered materials.
The production of the food and the final product must be overseen by an agent authorized to approve and certify organic foods by the USDA National Organic Program. The agent must follow all USDA Organic regulations.

How to Ensure USDA Organic Compliance

The above is just a small sampling of requirements that products must meet in order to be considered USDA Organic. Although it is possible to manufacture organic products without certification, doing so makes it difficult to inform consumers that your product is organic. This could lead to decreased sales. If you manufacture an organic food, it’s typically in your best interest to have it certified.

Get help navigating complex USDA regulations for food manufacturing and sales by contacting an experienced attorney. FDAlaw.net can assist you. Call today for a consultation to discuss your food labeling needs.

New Nutrition Labeling Requirements

Increased size font for certain parts of the label. Food manufacturers must now increase the typeface for serving size, number of servings per container, and the number of calories per serving.
Declaration of the amount of certain nutrients. Food manufacturers must now print the actual amount of potassium, calcium, iron, and vitamin D contained in a food product, in addition to the Percent Daily Value.

Declaration of added sugars. Nutrition labels must now include how many grams of added sugars a product contains, as well as the Percent Daily Value.
Some required nutrients are now voluntary. Food manufacturers no longer have to include how much vitamin A and vitamin C is contained in a food product but can do so voluntarily. Other vitamins and minerals besides calcium, potassium, iron, and vitamin D may also be voluntarily included on a product’s nutrition label.

Removal of calories from fat. The FDA once required nutrition labels to list the amount of saturated fat, trans fat, total fat, and calories from fat. However, new labeling requirements no longer include calories from fat.

Changes to serving sizes based on what people actually consume. Some food packaging contains between one and two servings of a food or beverage item. For these packages, the nutrition labels must list the entire contents of the package as a single serving. For example, a bottle of soda may technically be 1.5 servings, but people will usually drink the entire bottle of soda. Therefore, manufacturers must consider how a person will consume the product as packaged and adjust the nutritional facts and serving size accordingly. Some products will need to have a dual nutritional column that lists both the nutritional information for a single serving and the nutritional information for the entire package. For example, a candy bar may be eaten in portions or all at once, and new labeling requirements will allow consumers to better understand what they’re eating or drinking.
Get Help Meeting FDA Nutrition Label Requirements

The new changes to the FDA nutrition label requirements can be confusing for manufacturers. Get help ensuring that your labeling is up to speed by consulting with a seasoned FDA lawyer. Contact FDAlaw.net today for more information by calling.

Is your facility meeting these requirements? Find out now and how to get help becoming certain that your supplements are meeting Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP’s) and FDA regulations.

Is Your Manufacturing Facility up To Snuff?

Under DSHEA, you have the responsibility to create and maintain a manufacturing facility that protects the ingredients from becoming adulterated. Adulteration can happen during the manufacturing process, the packaging process, and the labeling process. Therefore, it’s crucial to be certain that your facility is set up in a manner to facilitate the safety and efficacy of your products.

Are You Keeping Appropriate Records?

CGMP’s also regulate how a dietary supplement manufacturing facility must keep records. In order to maintain FDA compliance, your facility must:

• Create and utilize master records for batch production and manufacturing
• Create written procedures for quality control
• Maintain written records of each product complaint that is relative to CGMP’s
• Retain all records for products for one year or more past the shelf life of the product. If shelf life is not applicable, two years or more beyond the date of distribution of that product

Records can be challenging to keep, especially ones as detailed as those listed above. It’s best to consult with an experienced FDA lawyer. An FDA lawyer can help you learn record keeping practices that ensure your compliance with the FDA.

Do You Have the Right Employees and Equipment?

DSHEA also regulates a dietary supplement manufacturing facility’s hiring practices and equipment. Under DSHEA, your facility has the responsibility to hire only employees and supervisors who are qualified to be working in the dietary supplement industry. More specifically, these people must be qualified to work with the supplements your individual facility manufactures.

Additionally, DSHEA requires that all utensils and equipment used to manufacture a dietary supplement are designed appropriately and are of a quality that is in accordance with their intended use. This means you may need to purchase specialized equipment depending on what type of dietary supplement your facility manufactures.

At FDAlaw.net, we can help you navigate the challenges that both DSHEA and CGMP’s present to dietary supplement manufacturers. Contact us today for a consultation.

The prior deadline for companies with over 500 full time equivalent employees was May 31, 2017.

The FSVP is a program that importers covered by the rule must have in place to verify that their foreign suppliers are producing food in a manner that provides the same level of public health protection as the preventive controls or produce safety regulations, as appropriate, and to ensure that the supplier’s food is not adulterated and is not misbranded with respect to allergen labeling.

At Capote Law Firm, we can guide your company and help implement the program to ensure compliance with the FSVP rule. Our FSVP program is tailored to your company. We create, implement, manage and/or train someone to manage as per your company’s unique requirements.

Importers are required to (1) identify and evaluate hazards in the foods they import; (2) evaluate supplier’s performance and the risk presented by the food; (3) conduct supplier verification activities; (4) perform corrective actions; (5) re-evaluate and reassess the FSVP program periodically; and (6) document everything.

Remember the deadline of March 2018 your company must have a fully implemented foreign supplier verification program. These programs take approximately 6 months to fully implement, depending on the amount of suppliers and food products covered.

There are additional deadlines and Capote Law Firm can provide you an analysis on your company’s specific deadlines to ensure compliance.

We can provide you flat fee pricing on this program, taking the guess work out of your budget.

Don’t Delay! Contact us today for a consultation by calling.

Here’s how to maintain compliance when making cosmetics.

The Key: Ensure Your Product Does Not Become Adulterated

According to FDA regulations, cosmetics may be manufactured at home, at a salon, or small facility. This is allowed as long as the environment does not cause the product to become adulterated. This means that the environment in which you manufacture your cosmetics must not cause them to become contaminated or potentially harmful when used as directed.

Cosmetic Compliance Checklist

Look at each area of your cosmetic manufacturing to be certain that nothing is causing your product to become adulterated.

Contamination. The FDA does not require a sterile environment for cosmetics manufacturing. However, you still need to be aware of contamination. Contamination includes bacteria, microbes, or other substances. You must do all that you can to prevent it by maintaining a clean working environment.
Restricted Colors and Additives. Certain color additives and other compounds are banned by the FDA. These components cannot be used in any cosmetic product, regardless of its intended use. Any banned color additives or compounds can cause your product to become adulterated and is in violation of FDA regulations.

Unsafe When Used as Directed. Your cosmetics must not harm to a person when the product is used according to package directions in a safe and reasonable manner.
Examine each aspect of your cosmetic thoroughly. Be certain that the ingredients and packaging do not cause the product to become adulterated. If you are inspected by the FDA, you could receive a cease and desist if your cosmetics become adulterated.

When to Get Legal Help

Navigating FDA regulations, even the simpler ones having to do with cosmetics, can be challenging. If you’re manufacturing cosmetics in a small facility, a salon, or at home, maintain compliance with FDA laws and guidelines.

An experienced FDA lawyer can help you learn more about the regulations you need to meet. Contact us today for a consultation to discuss your cosmetics venture and how to best maintain compliance with Food and Drug Administration guidelines. Call now for a consultation.

The Wm. Reece Smith, Jr. Leadership Academy is a multi-session training program designed to assist a diverse and inclusive group of lawyers in becoming better leaders within our profession, in their chosen path, while enhancing their leadership skills. Each year a select group of participants are selected from applications submitted to The Florida Bar to become Academy Fellows.

During their one-year term, Academy Fellows follow a curriculum tailored to enhance their professional development, knowledge base and experience, including attending The Florida Bar events and special educational programs. Academy Fellows are given the opportunity to learn more about the inner workings of the Bar and their role in the legal profession, while enhancing their personal leadership skills. The Academy’s Mission is to identify, nurture and inspire effective leadership within the Bar and the legal community.

Ms. Capote’s three-year term will begin on July 2017. For more information on the Florida Bar Leadership Academy visit https://www.floridabar.org/about/academy/