Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met with food industry executives on Monday in Washington, D.C., to discuss his Make American Healthy Again agenda.
In a post on X, Kennedy said he met with the Consumer Brands Association and leaders from Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Tyson Foods, Kellogg’s, Smuckers, and PepsiCo to discuss “advancing food safety and radical transparency to protect the health of all Americans, especially our children. We will strengthen consumer trust by getting toxins out of our food."
Great discussion today with @ConsumerBrands CEOs of @KraftHeinzCo @GeneralMills @TysonFoods @KelloggsUS @smuckers and @PepsiCo on advancing food safety and radical transparency to protect the health of all Americans, especially our children. We will strengthen consumer trust by… pic.twitter.com/6gEv1ch1rb
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) March 10, 2025
According to The New York Times, Kennedy focused on removing artificial dyes from the food supply, calling it an "urgent priority."
At the Monday meeting, Mr. Kennedy emphasized that it was a “strong desire and urgent priority” of the new Trump administration to rid the food system of artificial colorings.
In addition, he warned the companies that they should anticipate significant change as a result of his quest for “getting the worst ingredients out” of food, according to a letter from the Consumer Brands Association, a trade group. The Times reviewed a copy that was sent to the group’s members after the meeting.
And while Mr. Kennedy said in the meeting that he wanted to work with the industry, he also “made clear his intention to take action unless the industry is willing to be proactive with solutions,” the association wrote.
“But to underscore, decision time is imminent,” Melissa Hockstad, who attended the meeting and is the group’s president, wrote in the letter. (NYT)
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Later on Monday, Kennedy announced he is directing the Food and Drug Administration to explore potentially revising its Substances Generally Recognized as Safe rule, particularly looking at removing the self-affirmed GRAS pathway.
Currently, the FDA strongly encourages manufacturers to submit GRAS notices through the agency’s GRAS Notification Program, but industry can self-affirm that the use of a substance is GRAS without notifying the FDA. The FDA has completed and published more than 1,000 GRAS notices and evaluates an average of 75 notices per year. The agency maintains a public inventory where all GRAS notices that have been filed by the agency, along with the supporting data, and FDA’s final agency response letters are available for review and download by the public.
Eliminating the self-affirmation process would require companies seeking to introduce new ingredients in foods to publicly notify the FDA of their intended use of such ingredients, along with underlying safety data, before they are introduced in the food supply. (HHS)
"For far too long, ingredient manufacturers and sponsors have exploited a loophole that has allowed new ingredients and chemicals, often with unknown safety data, to be introduced into the U.S. food supply without notification to the FDA or the public," he said on X, sharing the HHS press release. "Eliminating the GRAS loophole will provide transparency to consumers, help get our nation’s food supply back on track by ensuring that ingredients being introduced into foods are safe, and ultimately Make America Healthy Again."
For far too long, ingredient manufacturers and sponsors have exploited a loophole that has allowed new ingredients and chemicals, often with unknown safety data, to be introduced into the U.S. food supply without notification to the @FDA or the public. Eliminating the GRAS…
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) March 11, 2025
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