K&L Gates Bolsters FDA, Food and Beverage Industry Capabilities with San Francisco Partner Addition

San Francisco - Global law firm K&L Gates LLP welcomes Natalie Rainer as a partner in its health care and FDA practice and food and beverage industry group. She joins the firm’s San Francisco office from Keller and Heckman LLP.

Rainer practices food and drug law, and advises clients on regulatory requirements for foods, dietary supplements, cosmetics, and food and drug packaging in jurisdictions around the world, including North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

Rainer has experience evaluating the regulatory status of food additives, color additives, and food-contact materials. She counsels companies on advertising and labeling requirements, including claim substantiation, nutrition labeling, menu labeling, and environmental claims. She also provides guidance regarding compliance with U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations, including bioengineered food labeling, organic rules, and regulations related to additives in meat and poultry products. Rainer is proficient on the practical application of Proposition 65 and assists in defending against Proposition 65 enforcement actions.

Rainer helps clients bring new food additive, color additive, food-contact material, and feed additives to market and has successfully filed a number of color additive petitions. She regularly prepares Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Notices, Food Contact Notifications, and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) safety and suitability determinations.

Michael Scanlon, co-leader of the firm’s global policy and regulatory practice area, commented: “Natalie is an accomplished and dynamic FDA regulatory lawyer with a demonstrated ability to attract and retain clients in the growing food and beverage space. She adds depth and knowledge to our leading health care and FDA regulatory practice.”

Rainer’s experience working in bioethics during law school gives her a unique perspective to her work. She is a member of the Institute of Food Technologists and the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and served on the Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) 2021 California Programs Planning Committee.

“We’re excited to welcome Natalie to the firm,” said Matt Mangan, managing partner of K&L Gates’ San Francisco office. “Her addition to the firm strengthens our FDA regulatory practice firmwide and provides support to our growing consumer, beverage, and agriculture practices. In addition, Natalie is well-positioned to serve the dynamic food industry in the Bay Area, particularly in the alternative protein and cell-based meat space.”

Rainer’s arrival follows the recent additions of San Francisco partners Jason Putnam Gordon (emerging growth and venture capital), Shab Puri (power), and H. Thomas Anderton (IP), as well as San Francisco and Los Angeles partner Eugene Ryu (labor and employment). They are among a dozen new partners and of counsel to join K&L Gates’ California offices since the beginning of 2020, and among more than 125 new partners and of counsel to join across the firm’s global platform during that time, with other health care and FDA lawyer additions including partners Ken Marlow, Matthew Miller, Kim Looney, Stephen Page, Wells Beckett, and Kevin Page in Nashville, Andrea Cunha in Austin, and of counsel Lou Patalano and Norman Acker in Research Triangle Park.

Lawyers in K&L Gates’ FDA practice have decades of experience effectively addressing the issues and problems that arise for growers, manufacturers, associations, cooperatives and technology providers. The team also provides crisis management in recall situations, as well as counsel on ingredient, labeling, and advertising matters. Additionally, they provide regulatory strategies for conventional food, functional food, dietary supplements, and medical food. The firm’s lawyers help clients comply with dietary supplement GMPs, provide representation in enforcement proceedings, and provide a comprehensive range of other services for the food sector.