FASTER Act Commentary by Attorney Lawrence Berliner May 3, 2021
On April 23rd, 2021 President Biden signed the FASTER Act, a federal law that will expand the list of ingredients that food manufacturers have to disclose to consumers on the product or ingredient labels.The FASTER Act had added sesame to the existing list of milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soybeans. The Faster Act also requires additional research regarding food allergies and the existing list of food allergens may be expanded in the future.
For children in Connecticut Public Schools, state laws that were enacted to protect children in public schools from sustaining a life threatening allergic reaction, such as anaphylaxis, by preventing the exposure to allergens in a school setting. In addition to state law, there are federal laws including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, that provide civil rights protection to individuals with disabilities, including those with food allergies. The FARE website (www.foodallergy.org) has additional resources and information about those two federal laws.
We should be proud that Connecticut’s U.S. Senators Blumenthal and Murphy, along with U.S. Representatives Himes and Hayes, were co-sponsors of the legislation that was signed into law last week by President Biden.
Article about the FASTER Act from the New Yorrk Times, “5 Takeaways From the New Food Allergy Law” : https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/26/well/eat/food-allergy-law-sesame.html