On May 29, 2019, the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced in a letter that it will remove the entry for Jambalaya from the Food Standards and Labeling Policy Book (Policy Book). The change came in response to a 2013 petition from Zatarain’s, a Louisiana-based food company owned by McCormick & Company, Inc., that requested FSIS revise the entry for Jambalaya in the Food Standards and Labeling Policy Book. The previous Policy Book entry for Jambalaya stated “[p]roduct must contain at least 25 percent cooked ham and one other meat or seafood must be included. A New Orleans dish involving rice and ham and usually tomatoes (shrimp or other shellfish, other meat or poultry), together with seasonings. Must show true product name, e.g., ‘Ham and Shrimp Jambalaya.’”
Zatarain’s petition stated Jambalaya is a dish with ingredients that vary greatly, and consumers do not always expect Jambalaya to contain ham and tomatoes. It went on to say Creole Jambalaya recipes usually have tomatoes but Cajun recipes usually do not, and some Jambalayas contain chicken and shrimp while others have sausage and onions. The petition included Jambalaya recipes and statements from several New Orleans chefs, all of which indicated Jambalaya includes a heavy portion of rice, but the chef can choose what kind of protein to include, if any. The petition proposed FSIS revise the Petition Book entry to say the dish can contain meat, seafood, and/or vegetables, but that it must be comprised of at least 50% rice. The New Food Economy published an article with more on the chefs that supported the petition and the history of Jambalaya.
Instead of revising the entry, FSIS removed it from the Policy Book entirely. FSIS states that for a product to now be labeled as Jambalaya, it must have “amenable levels” of meat or poultry and must state the common or usual name on the label. Removing the entry from the Policy Book is in keeping with a general movement away from standards that restrict innovation and will accommodate the many variations of Jambalaya in the marketplace, including those without any ham. The final policy is included in the May 31, 2019 Constituent Update.
