Cracking down on unsafe chemicals in ultraprocessed foods

Governor Newsom’s January 2025 Executive Order (EO) directed California to “crack down on ultra-processed foods” (UPFs) and unsafe ingredients, asking California Department of Public Health (CDPH) how to feasibly conduct state-level evaluations of food chemicals that evade FDA oversight via the GRAS loophole. Notably, the EO credited the California legislature for progress made with the CSPI-backed California Food Safety Act (2023) and California School Food Safety Act (2024). While these bills and Asm. Gabriel’s Real Food, Healthy Kids Act (2025) were critical steps in the right direction, Gov. Newsom and consumers from across the political spectrum are demanding broader reform.

The political climate is now ripe for the Legislature to stop companies from using the federal loopholes to secretly add carcinogens and other chemicals in foods without oversight (e.g., GRAS loophole) and use many of those ingredients without ever disclosing them publicly.

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