FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - While the U.S. food system is generally considered one of the safest and most efficient in the world, there are unique legal concerns arising in modern food production that the government, food companies and consumers share alike. Recent lawsuits against fast-food companies, claiming their "super-sized" portions contributed to obesity are one example. And the discovery of a B.S.E-infected cow on a Washington State dairy farm last year, may raise legal questions as it forces the United States to re-think the regulation of the cattle industry.

With increasing questions about the nation's food supply and its regulation on the forefront of American minds, the University of Arkansas School of Law is in the process of creating a new, cutting-edge academic journal, the Journal of Food Law and Policy, to address legal issues in the rapidly evolving food industry. It will be the first of its kind in a U.S. law school and a suitable fit for the University of Arkansas, which is home to the National Agricultural Law Center, the leading national resource and provider of objective, scholarly and authoritative agricultural and food law research and information.

"Food law and policy is an emerging area of law that continues to grow in significance," said Michael T. Roberts, research associate professor of law and director of the National Agricultural Law Center. "As the marketplace for food products becomes increasingly globalized, it is more important than ever for a law journal to be created to help develop a basic understanding and analysis of the complex array of laws and regulations that govern the manufacture and marketing of food.

"Plus this journal will be a fit for the university and the Northwest Arkansas economy because the local food industry is big nationally," Roberts said.

Food law has grown in significance as industries that process, distribute and market food and fiber have rapidly evolved. Practitioners who specialize in administrative law, international law, products liability, intellectual property, environmental law, business law and many other sectors are frequently faced with cases and questions that require a knowledge of food law.

The articles published in the Journal of Food Law and Policy will address cutting-edge legal and policy issues, and may include such topics as food safety, biotechnology, obesity litigation, international trade and standards, security and terrorism, food and dietary supplements, labeling and food products liability litigation.

The student-published journal will produce its first issue during the next academic year. The journal will initially be published twice a year. The first editorial board, under the supervision of a faculty journal committee, chaired by Lonnie Beard, UA professor of law, will be responsible for the new journal. Six second-year students have been chosen to comprise the first editorial board:

Editor in Chief: Margie Alsbrook of Fayetteville, Ark.
Executive Editor: Jason Springman of West Fork, Ark.
Articles Editor: Kelly DeGostin of Little Rock, Ark., and
Note and Comment Editors: Jason Milne of American Fork, Utah; Adrienne Kincaid Murphy of Magnolia, Ark.; and Reagan Madison of Bartlesville, Okla.
Roberts explained that they will solicit submissions for articles from scholars and legal experts across the nation. Students also may submit articles. He added that he and the board are currently compiling a list of people who have written in the past four to five years about the journal's subject matter.

Approximately 10-15 students, ranked in the top 25 percent of the current first-year class, will be invited to become candidate members of the Journal of Food Law and Policy this summer. This is a unique opportunity to assist in the formation of a new journal, and such an opportunity has not been available to students at the University of Arkansas School of Law for almost 60 years," said Beard. The candidate process will be similar to that used by the Arkansas Law Review, a legal periodical published quarterly by the students of the UA School of Law in cooperation with the Arkansas Bar Association.

The University of Arkansas has other plans to bring attention to food issues in the future. The School of Law plans to host a symposium on campus to discuss food-related issues sometime next year.