Insights on Consumer Products

Prop 65 Counsel: What To Know

2025 will be a transformational year for the beverage and food industry, which has already been dramatically impacted by shifting market trends and profound policy changes. Here are the top five topics influencing the strategies and growth plans of beverage and food companies.

Earlier this month, California Governor Gavin Newsom directed the state’s recycling agency, CalRecycle, to restart the process of issuing regulations for California’s landmark plastic and packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) law.

On the litigation front, a federal judge denied an attempt by the Cookware Sustainability Alliance (CSA) to halt Minnesota’s current ban on intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in cookware. However, the industry group continues to advocate for cookware exemptions with a track record of success across the nation.

ArentFox Schiff LLP is proud to announce that the firm’s Trademark practice and 10 attorneys have been ranked in 2025 WTR 1000 – the World’s Leading Trademark Professionals, the definitive guide for intellectual property (IP) practitioners.

With 2025 underway, the AFS Consumer Products team highlights some of the most pressing legal issues facing the consumer products industry this year.

ArentFox Schiff is pleased to announce that six thought leaders have been recognized by the 2025 JD Supra Readers’ Choice Awards, acknowledging the visibility and engagement their thought leadership has earned among readers during the past year.

Amidst mounting per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulation and litigation, the Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) judge overseeing the federal litigation related to firefighting foam has scheduled a “Science Day.”

In 2025, the retail and fashion industries are bracing for a transformative year, heavily influenced by the policies of the new Trump Administration. These policies promise rapid and significant changes, particularly in areas such as trade, tariffs, and immigration, which will profoundly affect global supply chains and labor dynamics.

Jonathan Judge spoke at the ICPHSO Annual Meeting and Training Symposium in Orlando, Florida, on February 18, 2025.

Welcome back to the AFS Fashion Insiders Executive Forum. Consumer Products Industry Group Co-Leaders Katia Asche and Matthew R. Mills discuss the ballooning legislation across states and in the federal government regulating “greenwashing” and the use of PFAS or “forever chemicals” in products ranging from food to apparel to kitchenware.

Prop 65 Counsel: What To Know

On January 6, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published in the Federal Register a notice announcing its determination that 35 previously authorized Food Contact Notifications (FCNs) for food contact substances containing per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are no longer effective.

Working toward a more circular economy will continue to be at the forefront in 2025. More and more, states are requiring producers to manage the end-of-life of an increasing number of consumer items, from packaging materials, paper products, and food service ware, to mattresses, carpets, and more. California is now the first state in the nation to establish an extended producer responsibility program expressly for textiles.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has continued its crackdown on false and misleading “Made in USA” claims. Since finalizing the Made in the USA Labeling Rule in 2021, which authorizes the agency to levy civil penalties against noncompliant companies, the FTC has brought 11 enforcement actions, resulting in over $15 million in judgments against parties found to have falsely labeled their products as being “Made in the USA.”

On December 6, 2024, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, the lead agency that implements Proposition 65, announced new amendments to the Proposition 65 “short-form” warning requirements.

California’s Proposition 65 requires businesses to provide warnings to California consumers about significant exposures to chemicals it has determined to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm when exposure to the chemicals exceeds an established safe harbor level in a consumer product.

Welcome to the December 2024 issue of “As the (Customs and Trade) World Turns,” our monthly newsletter where we compile essential updates from the customs and trade world over the past month. We bring you the most recent and significant insights in an accessible format, concluding with our main takeaways — aka “And the Fox Says…” — on what you need to know.

After three years of various proposals, on December 6, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), the lead agency that implements Proposition 65, finally announced new amendments to “short-form” warning requirements. These amendments have been long anticipated, as OEHHA’s several prior proposals to modify the short-form warnings were unsuccessful.

In a December 2, 2024, press release, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced the filing of a court order requiring online marketplace GOAT to pay more than $2 million for violating FTC rules and the company’s own policies related to shipping and refunds.

Most fashion, beauty, and retail companies depend heavily on global supply chains to produce products sold in the United States, but with significant tariff increases looming and an unpredictable trade landscape, companies need to reassess sourcing and manufacturing strategies. Countries that were traditional sources of lower cost and high-quality products could be the target of tariffs under President-elect Trump’s proposed tariff policies. We explore scenarios for these tariffs, the impacts on the fashion, beauty, and retail industries, and what companies can do to mitigate the impacts of the potential tariffs.

As we reported last month, a California federal court recently dismissed a per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) class action complaint on the basis that the plaintiffs’ total organic fluorine (TOF) analysis testing method was insufficient to support their allegations that the defendants’ products contained PFAS. Prior to this, courts had dismissed similar lawsuits based on lack of standing, holding that the plaintiffs failed to allege that the specific products they purchased were found to contain PFAS.

Prop 65 Counsel: What To Know

Revisions to the Negative Option Rule make it easier for consumers to cancel unwanted recurring subscriptions and memberships.

Prop 65 Counsel: What To Know