Pure Food and Drug Act

The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 marked the beginning of effective U.S. federal regulation of food and drug labeling and assurance of a safe food supply. It prohibited the false labeling or adulteration of foods and drugs transported interstate; as such, it was limited in scope. Items produced and sold within a state or territory came under only local laws. The Pure Food and Drug Act also did not give the federal government the right to require substantive food labels such as the ones Americans enjoy today, but it represented the early efforts toward federal protection for food consumers and substantial and effective federal controls on the safety and purity of the U.S. food supply.