Bimbo Bakeries USA, one of the largest commercial baking companies in the United States, reaffirmed its labeling practices for sesame following a warning from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) earlier this year.
The company owns well-known brands such as Sara Lee, Entenmann’s, Ball Park Buns & Rolls, Thomas’ (English muffins and bagels), Arnold, and Little Bites muffins.
In a statement sent to The Epoch Times on Oct. 9, Bimbo Bakeries explained its rationale for listing sesame as an ingredient on certain products, even when sesame is not always present.
“Bimbo Bakeries USA takes our role in protecting consumers with allergen sensitivities very seriously, through good manufacturing practices in our facilities and informative labeling on our packages,” the company said in the emailed statement.
Bimbo clarified that it labels sesame on products as a precautionary measure, due to variations in production at different facilities.
“Because these products are formulated with sesame at some of our bakeries and without it at others, we have taken the conservative approach of uniform labeling for these nationally distributed products,” the statement continued.
The FDA said these products were “misbranded” under federal law for listing sesame and tree nuts as ingredients when they were not actually present. The agency suggested that firms should adhere to good manufacturing practices and prevent allergen cross-contact rather than rely on labeling alone.
The FDA’s warning is part of a broader effort to enforce accurate allergen labeling, as outlined by recent food safety regulations, according to the letter.
The agency indicated that companies may voluntarily use advisory statements, such as “may contain sesame,” to alert consumers to potential cross-contact risks, rather than listing sesame as an ingredient when it is not part of the formulation.
In response to the FDA’s recommendations, Bimbo emphasized that its current approach ensures consistent labeling for consumers nationwide, particularly those with sesame allergies.
“This labeling approach is used to ensure sesame-allergic consumers have consistent labeling across the country and supplements our rigorous good manufacturing processes and preventive controls to address potential sesame cross-contact,” Bimbo stated.
CSPI previously petitioned the FDA to prohibit companies from adding allergens to ingredient labels to avoid regulatory scrutiny, a practice the organization considers a workaround to avoid costly recalls, they said in a statement released following the bakery’s comments first made to The Associated Press on Oct. 9.
“You add an ingredient that could trigger a harmful food allergy reaction, slap a label on it, and say you’ve solved the problem. Then you label even those versions that contain no sesame as containing it,” Sarah Sorscher, director of regulatory affairs for CSPI, said in a statement.
“We call on Bimbo Bakeries and other manufacturers to find a better approach for addressing cross-contact risks and take sesame out of these products, where it never should have been added to begin with.”
