General Course Descriptions for Terms: food law
940 - Food Law
What is "natural?" What is “healthy?” Is Wisconsin's "Cheeseburger Law" unconstitutional? Can food executives be imprisoned for the negligence of their companies? How do consumers fight food fraud? What about the rise of plant-based foods? What two cases decided last term at the U.S. Supreme Court may change the contours of food law? By the end of this course, students should understand: 1. How the law embodies our many expectations of food; 2. The history of food regulation in the United States and the relationship between the states and federal government in food oversight; 3. The role of litigation in protecting food safety, advancing good nutrition, and preventing food fraud; 4. The importance of core constitutional principles (First Amendment, Fourth Amendment, Commerce Clause, and Supremacy Clause) in food law; 5. How the law may be used to advance a national food policy, including eliminating hunger; 6. The role of the criminal law in advancing food safety.