[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 103 (Thursday, July 22, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1496]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FOOD ALLERGEN LABELING AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MARTIN T. MEEHAN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 22, 2004

  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Food 
Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act. I would like to thank 
Representative Nita Lowey for her leadership on this issue, and I would 
also like to thank Abby Giarrosso of Methuen, Massachusetts for 
bringing this important bill to my attention.
  Abby and her family request a meeting with my office because Abby 
wanted to share her experience as a child with celiac disease and to 
get legislation passed making it easier for her to eat safely. She 
shared letters that she had received from food companies in response to 
her requests for lists of products she could eat. The response letters 
were telling. Some gave her examples of gluten-free foods and others 
said that it was just too hard for them to break down their 
ingredients.
  After Abby came in to my office, I immediately cosponsored the bill, 
and commissioned a certificate for Abby making her an honorary 
Legislative Assistant for her work to pass this bill into law.
  Abby's story is so touching and compelling. At a birthday party she 
recently attended, they served pizza and cake and all of the children 
were given an assortment of goodies as party favors. She has a hard 
time in situations like that because while the other kids can eat the 
food, she has to just watch. Her parents do a fantastic job working 
around the problem. At the party they had her bring her own gluten-free 
pizza. It seemed reasonable to me that if manufacturers are going to 
sell products that have serious adverse health effects for a large 
number of consumers, the least they can do is disclose those 
ingredients.
  The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act will make it 
easier for people with food allergies to more easily identify a 
product's ingredients. By requiring food labels to list what, if any, 
of the eight major food allergens are contained in a product, the bill 
will protect people with food allergies from the risk of dangerous and 
even life-threatening reactions.
  The bill will also help the estimated three million Americans who 
suffer from celiac disease, an autoimmune disease that's triggered by 
the consumption of gluten. The legislation instructs the Department of 
Health and Human Services to define what constitutes ``gluten-free'' 
food and how the term should be used on food labels. For those who 
suffer from celiac disease, like Abby Giarrosso, accurate and easy to 
read food ingredient labels are critical to their health and well-
being.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important 
legislation.

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