FDA issues warning letter to Bimbo Bakeries for incorrect food labeling

Earlier this month, the United States FDA issued a warning letter to Bimbo Bakeries USA, the manufacturer of multiple major brands, including Sara Lee, Oroweat, Thomas’, Entenmann’s, and Ball Park. The letter warned the company for mislabeling and misbranding its products. According to the letter, the bakery included allergens on its product labels that were not present in the product.

For example, the FDA noted that the Sara Lee brand Artesano Brioche, Delightful Multigrain, Artesano Golden Wheat, and Artesano Smooth Multigrain ready-to-eat (RTE) bread loaf products were labeled as containing sesame seeds when the product did not actually contain any seeds. This mislabeling violates section 403(a)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

Additionally, the Brownberry brand Whole Grains 12 Grains and Seeds RTE bread loaf product also violates that section by incorrectly listing walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts as ingredients even though they do not contain them.

Beyond violations to section 403(a)(1), the bakery was also found in violation of section 403(i)(2) for the Brownberry brand Whole Grains 12 Grains and Seeds products, which did not list certain ingredients on the product label and incorrectly listed Khorasan wheat.

The FDA suggests that the brand add an additional voluntary allergen statement instead of including the allergens on the federally mandated food allergen label since the products do not contain these potential allergens.

The administration has announced that brown sugar powder does not meet the criteria for a natural flavor and must be included in the ingredient list on labels.

The mislabeling of allergens poses significant challenges for the millions of people across the US who have food allergies and must remain hypervigilant when choosing food products.

“Our community relies on accurate product labeling for their health and safety,” said Sung Poblete, chief executive of the nonprofit group FARE, Food Allergy Research and Education, in an email to AP News. “These findings about Bimbo Bakeries’ products undermine their trust and further limit their choices.

The company is expected to address the issues and provide a letter outlining their corrections strategies to the FDA.