Michael Leeds and Bruce Levinson Live Webinar: Off the Starting Block: Making the Most of New FDA Regulations

©2015 Matthews International, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Off the Starting Block:
Making the Most of the New FDA
Label Regulations
Michael Leeds & Bruce Levinson, SGK
August 18, 2016

©2016 Matthews International Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
How are leading
companies starting to
tackle the nutrition
label update?
What can we learn?
2

What has happened to date?
SOME BACKGROUND
3
Nearly every food and beverage
label in the country must change.
Most companies have until July 28,
2018 to comply.
Impact to serving sizes, nutrients
such as added sugars, sodium,
certain vitamins and ﬁber.
It creates a new level of
transparency and information
available to shoppers.
Previous Brandsquare sessions
have covered the key changes.

Why the change?
SOME BACKGROUND
According the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:
• “Reflects updated scientific information, including the link between diet, chronic diseases, and public health
• Updated serving sizes are needed to reflect changes in amounts of foods consumed
• Format draws attention to calories and serving sizes, two important elements in making healthier food choices”
4

Initial Reactions
5

Question 1.
What have companies
already started to do?
6

©2016 Matthews International Corporation. All Rights Reserved. 7
“Um, nothing, actually.”
What have companies started to do?

“Organized a cross-functional team to manage the
transition. We also ear-marked budget for this.”

“Organized a cross-functional team to manage the
transition. We also ear-marked budget for this.”
“We have begun discussions about
how to prioritize our SKUs."

It’s still early. If you are
ahead of the game or
behind the game, don’t
feel too proud or too
nervous. We are just
getting started.
Companies are
at very different
stages
What can we learn from these initial reactions?
KEY TAKEAWAYS

The FDA regulation has
been a very long time in
development; now is
the time to align
resources and take this
seriously again.
One critical first
step is simply
organizing a
team
KEY TAKEAWAYS
getting started.
Companies are
at very different
stages

Budgets are ﬁnite of
course, so determining
if this effort will replace
or be incremental
activity will be essential
to brand planning.
The budget will
dictate more
than just finances
development; now is
the time to align
seriously again.
One critical first
step is simply
organizing a
team
KEY TAKEAWAYS
getting started.
Companies are
at very different
stages

Competing priorities are
inevitable; setting a
clear, fact-based,
objective approach can
keep things efﬁcient and
reduce redundancies.
Spend time to
determine the
key priorities
Budgets are ﬁnite of
course, so determining
if this effort will replace
or be incremental
activity will be essential
to brand planning.
The budget will
dictate more
than just finances
development; now is
the time to align
seriously again.
One critical first
step is simply
organizing a
team
KEY TAKEAWAYS
getting started.
Companies are
at very different
stages

Question 2.
What early challenges
have companies
encountered?
14

“We expected to have
more than 2 years to
comply. Now we’re
going to need to make
choices about how we
pace certain projects.”
What are the early challenges?

comply. Now we’re
“Templates were only
recently published, with
guidance to come.”

comply. Now we’re
“We need to educate and
inform our Marketers.”
guidance to come”

comply. Now we’re
“Actually getting the new nutritional data - e.g,
how much Vitamin D is in a serving - will be a
bottleneck for us.”
“We need to educate and
inform our Marketers.”
guidance to come”

Depending on how
much of your brand
portfolio you typically
change in a year, the
compliance window
could pose a challenge.
Two years may
sound like a lot
of time, but it
may not be
What can we learn from these initial challenges?
KEY TAKEAWAYS

Depending on how
much of your brand
compliance window
Two years may
sound like a lot
of time, but it
may not be
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Some companies noticed
that new templates were
not immediately provided
by the FDA. The right
partners will help you
through this.
Seeking the right
resources is key

Depending on how
much of your brand
compliance window
Two years may
sound like a lot
of time, but it
may not be
If your company has felt
this update is a
“regulatory thing” or
even a “packaging
thing” some serious
education is required.
It’s time to raise
organizational
awareness
KEY TAKEAWAYS
through this.
Seeking the right
resources is key

Depending on how
much of your brand
compliance window
Two years may
sound like a lot
of time, but it
may not be
It sounds trite, but
expect the unexpected.
Some brands and some
categories - will see
enormous opportunities
or challenges emerge.
Expect new
challenges
If your company has felt
this update is a
“regulatory thing” or
even a “packaging
thing” some serious
education is required.
It’s time to raise
organizational
awareness
KEY TAKEAWAYS
through this.
Seeking the right
resources is key

Question 3.
What initial brand growth
ideas have companies
developed?
23

“Yes! We see a new
competitive claim we’ll make
versus our closest competitor.
On pack and off!”
Any initial brand growth ideas?

On pack and off!”
“Actually, we see a
serious risk with some
products. We need to
either reformulate or
repackage - or both.”

“We’re going to save
money by doing a
graphics restage at
the same time as we
change the labels.”
On pack and off!”

“We’re going to save
money by doing a
graphics restage at
the same time as we
change the labels.”
On pack and off!”
“As a healthy brand,
we are excited to get
out there ﬁrst and
show our consumer
that we are leaders in
label transparency.”

This regulation may
enable powerful new
claims - this is rare -
seize the chance to
gain advantage and
think beyond the pack.
Seize the
moment
What can we learn from these initial ideas?
KEY TAKEAWAYS

This regulation may
enable powerful new
seize the chance to
gain advantage and
Seize the
moment
Brands are increasingly
looking to leverage the
always-on channel of
packing but less real
estate poses a design
challenge.
Consider
broader
implications
KEY TAKEAWAYS

This regulation may
enable powerful new
seize the chance to
gain advantage and
Seize the
moment
Beyond the supply-
chain logistics, the in-
market timing of new
packaging can also
inﬂuence consumer
perceptions of brands.
Timing matters
challenge.
Consider
broader
implications
KEY TAKEAWAYS

This regulation may
enable powerful new
seize the chance to
gain advantage and
Seize the
moment
Will you reformulate or
repackage? What will
your competitor do?
Now is the time to do
some war-gaming and
plan for different
marketplace scenarios.
Thoroughly
evaluate the
deeper decisions
Beyond the supply-
chain logistics, the in-
market timing of new
packaging can also
inﬂuence consumer
perceptions of brands.
Timing matters
challenge.
Consider
broader
implications
KEY TAKEAWAYS

Additional Considerations
32

What’s in a word?
THE NATURAL DEBATE
• A lot and nothing at all
• A potential ﬁne or change in interpretation
• The FDA has been petitioned to provide a deﬁnition
33

The new direction and options for food and beverage brands
CONGRESS AND GMO
34
• The State of Vermont’s Law has been pre-empted
• Greater ﬂexibility now sits with the brand-owner
• Solution sets now include Smart-Labels

Smart labels informing traditional and e-commerce choices
DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY
35
• Federal GMO legislation is fueling the conversation
• Alternate watermarking techniques are viable
• Agile production models can enhance the experience

What can we learn?
EUROPE JUST WENT THROUGH THIS
36
• A solid project plan, resourced fully, will reduce business disruption
• Have a plan to manage the entire supply chain
• Don’t wait until the last minute to react, you can’t buy more time
• Planning for both the physical and digital shelves concurrently saves
time and money

This is only the ﬁrst lap.
37

It’s still early,
but leading
companies
are getting
focused and
prepared to
win.

Your questions, please.
To assess your preparedness, get resources and talk to SGK’s brand
and label experts, visit Label Central at schawk.com/label-central
39

Proprietary and confidential. ©2016 Matthews International Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be
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storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from Matthews International Corporation. This document is intended only for the
use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and contains information that is privileged, confidential or otherwise exempt from
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and confidential information of Matthews International Corporation and recipient may not make use of, disseminate, or in any way
disclose this document or any of the enclosed information to any person other than employees of addressee to the extent necessary for
consultations with authorized personnel of Matthews International Corporation.
http://www.sgkinc.com
http://www.anthemww.com
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http://www.schawk.com
http://www.matthewsinternational.com
40

Michael Leeds and Bruce Levinson Live Webinar: Off the Starting Block: Making the Most of New FDA Regulations

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Michael Leeds and Bruce Levinson Live Webinar: Off the Starting Block: Making the Most of New FDA Regulations