SGK, a division of Matthews International and a leading global brand development, activation and deployment provider that drives brand performance, announces that Bruce Levinson, vice president, client engagement, will present How To Turn FLMA Into Your Competitive Advantage in a webinar on January 22, 2015, 1:00 p.m. ET.

For the first time in nearly 20 years, the FDA is proposing an update to its iconic Nutrition Facts label, giving manufacturers and brand owners a valuable opportunity to educate consumers and refresh and grow their brands.

The FDA’s proposed food label changes are likely the most extensive nutrition policy change in decades. If the proposed changes are adopted, brands will be required to make nutrition label updates, which include providing consumers with a greater understanding of nutrition science, updating serving sizes and addressing new labeling requirements for certain package sizes.

Levinson will address what the nutrition label update will mean for brands as well as outline six steps food and beverage companies should be taking right now to turn the update into a competitive advantage. Registrations for the January 22nd webinar will be accepted up until the 1:00 p.m. ET start time at http://brandsquare.com.

“New federal regulations covering food and beverage packaging present a critical opportunity to invest in a brands’ market competitiveness,” says Levinson. “The pending changes to the FDA food labeling regulations will rebalance the competitive context, presenting an enormous opportunity for brands.”

Adds Levinson: “Our advice at SGK is to think holistically about the FDA’s impending regulation and view it as a comprehensive undertaking, not merely a template for marketing communication. The proposed regulation isn’t the sole purview of regulatory or packaging design departments. It is an ecosystem-wide event that will carry implications and tradeoffs for brand, design, purchasing, printers, agencies, retailers and, of course, shoppers and consumers.

“Put simply, a dislocating event like this will yield winners and losers — the more prepared brands have a better chance of driving brand performance and of being winners.”

Levinson concludes: “The proposed nutrition label regulation update presents an enormous opportunity for a brand to separate itself from the pack. The brands that update their labels with shoppers in mind will win new customers and build stronger relationships with the ones they already have.”

“Start preparing now — view the proposed regulation as a springboard toward transparency and as an opportunity to use your package design to help consumers feel more passionate and involved in the brand because of what it does for them and for their lives. After all, desirability is the most sought after quality in a brand. It represents the source of a brand’s influence.”