Heart Assn. Food Labels Assailed by FDA : Health: The fee-based endorsements are called possibly misleading. But the group decided it would not cancel the program.

The Food and Drug Administration threatened Wednesday to take legal action against an American Heart Assn. food-labeling program that the agency said could be misleading, but the heart association decided to go ahead with the program.

The FDA said in a letter that the labeling program could be “risking regulatory action.” It said there is a “very real possibility that the FDA would find one or more foods under your program to be misbranded,” meaning that the labels might mislead people.

The program, known as Heartguide, represents an ambitious heart association attempt to educate consumers by identifying foods that are low in saturated fat, total fat content, cholesterol and sodium.

Products tested and approved by the association, for a fee, would carry a red heart symbol with a check mark on their labels.

The FDA has authority to act against a product only after it is on the market. The agency can require that labels be changed. It can also bar further sales of improperly labeled products or seize them, Jeff Nesbit, an FDA spokesman, said.

Vicki Anderson of Heartguide said that the program, scheduled to begin Monday, has been under development for three years and was discussed with FDA representatives throughout the last year.

The heart association said that it is going ahead with the labeling program. “We’ve already talked to the companies” participating and “they are in,” said another Heartguide spokeswoman, Jamy Poth.

More than 100 brands of margarine, cooking oil, crackers and vegetables have already been tested and approved. Some of the products are Mazola corn oil, Promise margarine, Pam cooking sprays, Melba Toast and Hanover frozen vegetables.

But the next phase of the program, in which cereals, cheese, cookies, pasta, salad dressings and other foods will be included, has been put on hold pending further consultation with the FDA, Anderson said.

None of the labeled products are available in stores. Anderson said that manufacturers had begun printing containers with the labels, but the products were not yet ready for shipment.