"Dairy" "Free" "Is" "A" "Lie"

This is 100% why I can’t trust. . .

Oddly enough, I contacted the Everyday Essentials and didn't hear anything back. I’m not sure what their position is on lying but if I had to guess, I would say they are pro!

This is not the normal, "might contain trace amounts. . ." or "processed in a plant that also. . ." this is clearly stating it is dairy-free and clearly stating there is dairy in it.

I did a little research and found "dairy-free" is not a rational term but one build on legalities and statistics - as plainly explained here from the foodallergygourmet.com:

Non-dairy creamers, non-dairy ice cream and other so-called non-dairy products can contain dairy, and still legally be labeled “non-dairy.” According to the FDA’s regulations, only a product containing actual milk in specific forms can be labeled dairy. The FDA does not allow milk derivatives or milk by-products to be called dairy. So if a product has a milk derivative or byproduct, it can be called non-dairy. Lactose is a great example. Many of the so-called non-dairy products contain lactose, which is a derivative from milk.

Makes you wonder, doesn't it? You can read more about how the FDA defines terms you think you might know by checking out Code of Federal Regulations Title 21, Part 101: Food Labeling.

While everything is surely legally based, not human based, I'd like to think that maybe this company is trying to market and warn at the same time - pointing out a sort of faulty logic that could affect thousands if not millions of people because what "dairy-free" means to me, someone who cannot consume dairy, means something different in the world of food production.

I even came across a letter from April 2004 in which Ms. Anne Mufioz-Furlong reported this issue (in a January letter) and to which it was explained to her there could be some confusion over the term "dairy-free."

Because laws at the State rather than Federal level currently influence the use of a “non-dairy” statement on food labels, FDA would be willing to contact representatives of such States to discuss FAAN’s concern with them. To help facilitate this discussion, we would like to know if we could share a copy of your January 21” letter along with its enclosures with our State partners so FDA can more accurately and fully describe the problem with the current use of this term for milk-allergic consumers. We believe that this Federal-State dialog is an essential first step to pursuing a possible remedy.

To me, this isn't simply about avoiding all foods or growing your own or becoming vegan or whatever the common response when any issue is found with a food or product (I think a lot involves panicky parents raising alarms because their sweet children are in danger). To me, it's about logic and clarity.

I want my backyard farmer to grow his crops and then grow his business into larger businesses - as has happened with most of these businesses - I just want to trust the use of simple terms is not double-speak. Don't protect yourself legally, protect yourself in a practical and straight-forward manner.

Maybe there is a bigger issue when it comes to casein and dairy and milk during production - how can this be solved so it's clearer? I know no one is going to do anything so I got to do something.

Seems to be, a really easy way, Everyday Essentials should remove "Dairy-free" from its product. Not because it's not legally dairy-free but because it's the right thing to do for people like me who can't have dairy.