PORTLAND, Maine - Maine Sen. Angus King says he is getting behind an effort to force non-dairy products to stop using labels with terms such as milk, yogurt and cheese.
The dairy industry has been pushing against plant-based alternatives to products that traditionally involve dairy products. The National Milk Producers Federation has said it wants the government to clarify the issue for consumers.
King, an independent, says he is supporting the "Dairy Pride Act,'' which he says would require the Food and Drug Administration to issue guidance for nationwide enforcement of "mislabeled imitation dairy products.''
King says it's an "insult'' to Maine's dairy farmers that non-dairy products are allowed to call themselves milk.
The Good Food Institute, which advocates for plant-based foods, has accused lawmakers of putting the dairy industry ahead of consumers.