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The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced it will launch an investigation into whether the nutrition claims posted on food packaging violate federal food labeling laws, Reuters reports. The FDA is pursuing the investigation amid complaints that they provide a misleading picture of the health benefits of a particular food product. Noting that “some nutritionists have questioned whether this information is more marketing-oriented than health-oriented,” FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg contends that “judging from some of the labels that we have seen, we think this is a valid concern.” According to Hamburg, some food items containing almost 50 percent sugar display a “Smart Choices” checkmark, while other food packages claim to have a high percentage of the recommended daily vegetable intake, but fail to note that the same product also contains 80 percent of the recommended fat intake. As part of its investigation, the FDA plans to develop a series of proposed standards that companies must follow when creating nutrition labels for the front of food packaging. According to the New York Times, the proposed regulations could be issued within a few months, with plans for finalization by the end of 2010. In addition, the FDA will consider whether consumers would benefit from the use of a single symbol on the front of packages to convey nutritional content, as opposed to the variety of symbols and statements currently being employed. The Grocery Manufacturers of America, a trade group representing food makers, has said it will collaborate with the FDA to determine which types of information are most useful to consumers (Richwine, Reuters, 10/20/09; Neuman, New York Times, 10/20/09 [subscription required]).