Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday issued an executive order seeking to limit access to ultra-processed foods, a directive as a continuation of California’s “nation-leading” nutrition and health standards.
“The food we eat should not make us sick or have lifelong consequences,” Newsom said in a statement. “California has long served as a leader in creating healthy and delicious school lunches and removing harmful ingredients and chemicals from food. We work with industry, consumers and experts to We will crack down on ultra-processed foods and build a healthier future for all Californians.”
The order directs state officials to develop recommendations to limit health hazards from ultra-processed foods and warns recipients of federal food benefits about candy, soda made with artificial colors and additives. , is asking for suggestions to reduce the purchase of other unhealthy foods.
The move comes weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes the oath of office for a second term, naming iconoclastic former environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services. . President Kennedy still needs Senate confirmation, but he has been a vocal critic of ultra-processed foods and has promised to overhaul the nation’s food system. Food dyes, pasteurized milk, and seed oils are common items he has criticized, sometimes making health claims that are not supported by science.
Although Newsom did not mention Kennedy, the Democratic governor of California is planting a preemptive flag on the issue, signaling his refusal to concede ground to the incoming Trump administration. His executive order included a long list of steps the state has taken to improve nutrition.
Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their natural state, such as frozen vegetables, whereas ultra-processed or highly processed foods are foods that have been significantly modified from their natural state, such as packaged potato chips or soft drinks. It is a modified food. Research shows that ultra-processed foods make up a large portion of the U.S. food supply.
“Part of the reason people want to see change in the food system is because the regulatory system is so lax,” said Corti Endowed Professor of Food, Wine and Culture at the University of California, who studies the cultural politics of food and health. Professor Charlotte Birtekoff said: Davis.
The U.S. regulatory framework is much more relaxed than the European one, where many additives that are still allowed in the U.S. are prohibited.
“This is really a contest between different kinds of authorities: who gets to decide what is good food, and based on what kind of knowledge,” Birtekov said. He suggested Newsom’s order would likely face pushback from the food industry.
In the past few years, the soda lobby has defeated a proposal by the city of Sacramento to issue health warnings on sugary drinks, and groups representing candy makers, snack food companies and convenience stores have lobbied for efforts to limit colorings and additives. We have been lobbying against the. They argue that food safety is well regulated and that creating a patchwork of rules in different states is bad business.
The Golden State is a national leader in banning food additives, and Newsom will make California the first state in the nation to introduce a 2023 bill banning four additives found in popular cereals, sodas, candy and drinks. signed.
Before it was passed, the California Food Safety Act was colloquially known as the “Skittles Ban” law. That’s because an earlier version of the bill also covered titanium dioxide, which is used to color Skittles and some other popular candies. However, the final law was amended to remove reference to this substance and ban only brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, and red dye No. 3.
Last year, Newsom signed another bill banning snack foods containing numerous artificial colors from California public schools. The law, which goes into effect on December 31, 2027, will prevent popular snack foods like Flamin’ Hot Cheetos from being placed in school vending machines and cafeterias.
Laws protecting students from sugary drinks go back decades, with California banning the serving of soda in all K-12 schools in 2009.
The governor’s order cites the link between “ultra-processed foods” and cancer, obesity, diabetes and other health problems. The order says more than 10,000 chemicals are allowed in food, color additives and ingredients in the United States, compared to 300 allowed in the European Union.
Newsom is asking the California Department of Public Health to submit recommendations by April 1 to limit the hazards associated with ultra-processed foods and food ingredients that pose health risks, including warning labels. may be included. He ordered the California Department of Human Services to issue recommendations on the same schedule to reduce purchases by California food stamp users of ultra-processed foods such as soda and candy, as well as foods made with synthetic food colors and additives. Ta.
Among several health directives, his order also requires state agencies to identify areas to raise standards for healthy school meals and to investigate the negative health effects of food coloring. are.
Ultra-processed foods are likely to be at the forefront of the national debate in the coming weeks as President Kennedy prepares for his Senate confirmation hearing.
Kennedy, a prominent anti-vaccine activist, has promoted numerous false health claims and fringe conspiracy theories. But his stance on food additives also brought support from unlikely allies who criticized other parts of his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda.
“Certainly there are some things he stands for that we agree with, but they’re more like a stopped clock that gets accurate twice a day,” Center for Science in the Public Interest said Dr. Peter Lurie, President and Executive Director of . In a previous interview with the Times, he cited food additives as an example.
Lurie characterized Kennedy’s possible appointment more broadly as a dangerous choice because Kennedy “can’t tell the difference between good science and bad science.”
The Food and Drug Administration, perhaps the most public agency in President Kennedy’s crosshairs, could be significantly impacted by his leadership if confirmed by the Senate.
The agency, which falls under the Department of Health and Human Services, regulates about 77% of the U.S. food supply and oversees the safety of about $4 trillion worth of food, tobacco and medical products, according to federal data. It has wide-ranging powers. .
President Kennedy claimed that the FDA was “not protecting our children” and said he would wipe out “entire divisions” of the agency, including the division that oversees nutrition. President Kennedy called for a ban on ultra-processed foods from school lunches and criticized the effects of food coloring. He also makes several claims about the food supply that experts say are false, including claiming that Americans are being “unknowingly poisoned” by seed oils.
