History of warning labels in the US

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Warning on a packet of cigarettes Surgeon General's warning cigarettes.jpg
Warning on a packet of cigarettes

The history of warning labels in the United States began in 1938 when the United States Congress passed a law mandating that food products have a list of ingredients on the label. [1]

Contents

In 1966 the Federal government mandated that cigarette packs have a warning on them from the surgeon general. Congress voted in 1973 that products containing “toxic substances” must have labels. In 1985 there was a testimony that wanted record companies to put labels on music that contained sexual or violent lyrics. On March 29, 1990 warning labels were put on music products that contained potentially offensive lyrics; this was done with the agreement of the recording companies. In 1989, alcohol was required to have their surgeon general’s warning.

Several federal agencies are involved in the business of warning-labels, including the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. FBI warning labels have been appeared since 1975 in rented movies warning people about video piracy.

Types of warning labels

There are three levels of labelling; caution, warning and danger: [2]

See also

Citations

  1. Carlson 2006.
  2. Rys, Meyer & Sebranek 2006, p. 567.

Works cited

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