Washington, D.C.—WholeFoods continues its coverage of the lawsuit brought against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding qualified health claims for selenium and health claim censorship with an update. The parties suing the agency, represented by Attorney Jonathan Emord, et al., have filed opposition to the FDA’s own opposition to their suit. At press time, the agency had one month to respond to the statement filed by the Alliance for Natural Health USA (ANH-USA) and others, which accuses the FDA of ignoring four court orders dating back to 1999 and thereby breaching constitutional First Amendment freedom of speech.

“We directly assert that FDA has engaged in contumacious conduct (contempt) for not abiding by four prior court orders,” Emord said. “The FDA has asked this court to overturn those prior cases—a power the district court lacks in our precedent-based system.” The intentions of both parties seem to indicate the case will continue on, perhaps even for years.

Richard Passwater, Ph.D., science editor for WholeFoods and contributor to the scientific basis of the case, emphasizes the importance of the lawsuit for restoring freedom of information to the health industry and to the public. He points out, “The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution permits everyone, including our industry, to make truthful statements. This includes statements about the relationship between various nutrients and herbs and diseases and their treatments.”

Published in WholeFoods Magazine, March 2010