of tbt 8ttittb iiWatt!j 8a.IfJingttm, J)C .20515 July 18, 2011 i I: The 'vnsaAUc The HOnomble Kathleen Sebelius Secretary r i Secretary U.S. ofAgriculture U.S: Department of Health and Human Services 1400 Al'!eD11e, SW 200 Independence Avenue, SW Was.hiDgtoD1 DC 2025() , Washington, D.C. 20201 / : : ). The iron,uJi,ovm . C1..._:_A- i: ' , W1UUIAlol ; ! j' ,!' Federal 1#:0 eomnUhsion 600 Pennsyl .: Av.ue"N.W. Wasbingto.tiJ 20Sli1) i . I Dear Seicretary SebeJius, and Chainnan Leibowitz: i ,I the leading confectionery producing state- in the providing over 21,000 jobs and producing approximately 59.3 billion worth ofconfBotionery preductsiiv Y ' we,writa: to express our significant and immediate concerns over the .' INUfLii,:lion Principles Food Marketed to by . Wodting ': We. SIJroneJ,y urge you to wrthdmw these overreaching, and pnnClples that blat.ant1y,discriniiliate*gainst an industry that has made extensive voluatmy strides over the years to advertising1to children.. The gul&lines represent an alanning regulatory overreach on the part 0fmembers ofthe wditing As you know, the FY 2009 Omnibus AppropriatioD8 Act difected theJIfIDA, F1C, CDC) and FTC to complete a study and to provide reeommen.dations in theform tflt f:' Congress. However, for reasons that reJilain llflc,ear, the IliteragenCY W-01'k.iJtg!G!nI1,P' fj .' to complete the study or deliver a report, but instead proceeded to propose sweeping . etiIJg guidelines. While the principles put forth by the :rntm'aaency !.' are they are still cause for concern as they appear to be an a.ttc;1npt to regtilate ab , :congn;t!isioUal action. At a time ofbudget constraints and competing ageney priorities, sidjGuhllirtg w!leam that valuable agency resources have been diverte4 to'seek objeetives . ijyond rihe iiIltent ofCongress . . ! I . i i', Un* diese nutrition standards, D10st food and beverage preducts manufactured inthe state could no longer be marketed to children and teens. In 841ditioll, the Interagency.['WtMrldnl flJroup proposed . marketing restrictions 'have the potential to impede the __== involvement ofmany of Pennsylvania's leading fuod and beV( ?,e cd " .es, c:spe(jfially those that manufacture and market the vast majority ofehocolate and tat: '. netiy saId in the United States. By broadly defining marketUlgto include , L , I j' I ! : i " ! JUL-19-2011 23:15 202 225 2013 97% P.002 .' . ..>, . 07/20/2011 10:36 FAX 202 225 2013 REP. JOE PITTS ",0031004 llt-of-s4ie d!t;plays, sponsorships well as television, radio, printand media, ce aMes wOilld not be pemutted to use eqwty charactets or sports heroes on 'many packages nQilonger design and market seasonal shaped and seasonal wrapped products, Slibh) as choqolate Easter Bunnies and chocolate Santas. i ! . In a4di!tion. lumting the ability ofcompanies or brands to sponsor local and national events and teans. especially when those sponsorships would be visible to teen audiences, would imp.t .tonty.major entertainment events, but also and perhaps more imPot'tantly, remove one!btttle small businesses lend their support to communities. Intustry has . made great Strides 011: "vemsing through self regulation. We urge you ail to examine the Children's and! Advertising Initiative and the enOImOUS progress mde over the past . i the need to address the growing trend:ef cbHdhood obesitY, food marketing oidy one aspeitt ofthe larger puzzle. Lack ofphysical activity, unheaItlily eating habits, and lS4Cialilfactors, such as socioeconomic status, are additional contributing factors of accordingto the Department ofHealth and Human Services. . IronicaJIy, tile. gui .. :ncs1would restrict companies efforts to help improve physical fitness in their local mbIs, by . bi1:dlting them from .sponsoring school and community-based athletic programs. It is put forth a set of industry guidelines that inherently contradict federal are not IIBsed on sufficient research and analysis. For these reasons we urge you to with .. 'the Prelintlnary Proposed Nutrition Principles to Food Marketed to Children and the direction to complete the study required by Congress and comply Order 13653 by assessing the cost ofthe proposed marketing restrictions, ensuring j-listify the costs, and clearly demoastrating that the proposed restrictions will help codsumers iealthy diets, based on objective science. Sincerely,
, I JUL-19-2011 23:15 202 225 2013 97% P.003 .._---... - , "'.<ibt. .. . .... 07/2012011 10: ;US to'AX l!0l! 225 2013 HEP. JOE Pl1TS , i , ! -, . .. f I
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