Appellate court gives mixed ruling on Ohio rBST labeling rules. Judges strike, uphold aspects of dairy labeling regulations.

摘要

In striking down some Ohio rules on dairy product labeling, an appellate court cited arguments that cows treated with recombinant bovine somatotropin may produce lower-quality milk. On Sept. 30, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that dairy producers who choose not to use recombinant bovine somatotropin in production can claim on their product labels that the products are "rBST free." In their decision, the judges upheld state rules requiring the producers to include a disclaimer indicating that the Food and Drug Administration has found no substantial differences between milk produced by cows treated with rBST and those not treated. However, they overturned a rule barring producers from separating the rBST-free claim from the disclaimer on the packaging. The judges also upheld rules about the disclaimer font size, color, case, and style.