{"id":4650,"date":"2015-11-11T11:37:08","date_gmt":"2015-11-11T16:37:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/?p=4650"},"modified":"2016-05-16T08:44:10","modified_gmt":"2016-05-16T13:44:10","slug":"towards-safer-food-additives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/2015\/11\/11\/towards-safer-food-additives\/","title":{"rendered":"Towards Safer Food Additives"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tom Neltner, J.D.<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>is Chemicals Policy Director.<\/em><\/p>\n

EDF strives to make safer food available by partnering with companies to reduce and eliminate potentially unsafe\u00a0chemical food additives and supporting efforts to fix a broken regulatory system.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For many years this blog has focused on the safety of chemicals and nanomaterials used in industrial and consumer products.\u00a0 Most of these substances are regulated federally by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).\u00a0 But we also encounter chemicals in other ways, including those present in or added to food.\u00a0 Such chemicals are regulated under a different law, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act (FFDCA), administered by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).\u00a0 This blog introduces EDF\u2019s \u201cBehind the Label\u201d<\/a> initiative to get unsafe and questionable chemicals out of our food by using dual levers of change\u2014corporate leadersh\"IFIC<\/a>ip and public policy.\u00a0\u00a0 Making our food trustworthy demands leadership in both the private sector and the FDA.<\/p>\n

The food market is changing rapidly as manufacturers work to keep up with consumer concerns about what\u2019s in our food. And it\u2019s not just about added sugar, salt and trans<\/em> fats, or whether the food was grown locally or with or without pesticides. Public campaigns increasingly put the spotlight on many chemicals commonly used in food and food packaging\u2014food additives\u2014with growing scientific evidence questioning the safety of their use.<\/p>\n

A respected industry survey<\/a> released in May 2015 showed that 36% of consumers rated chemicals in food as their most important food safety concern \u2013 greater than pathogens, pesticides, animal antibiotics and allergens, and up from 23% in 2014 and 9% in 2011. These concerns translated into action; 23% of consumers reported changing their buying habits (corrected from 45% on May 16, 2016)<\/em>.<\/p>\n

A CivicScience survey<\/a> released the same month showed similar results, with those having concerns more likely to live in rural areas, not use social media, and make their lunch rather than going out to eat\u2014suggesting that this is not just about the latest trend among \u2018foodies\u2019<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In 2015, major food companies such as Nestle, General Mills, Kellogg’s, Hershey\u2019s and Campbell\u2019s\u00a0<\/a>announced commitments to reformulate\u00a0many of their iconic brands to be free of artificial colors and flavors. National restaurant chains such as Panera, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Subway and Noodles & Company<\/a> also made similar commitments. They are following the lead of grocers such as Whole Foods, Trader Joe\u2019s, Kroger and ALDI who have reformulated some of their private brands.<\/a>\u00a0 Tens of billions of dollars of products are being reformulated.\u00a0 \u00a0And that\u2019s a good thing.<\/p>\n

These commitments are only one step in addressing the\u00a0much larger problem of potentially unsafe chemicals present in food and their cumulative effect on our health. After years of research, in 2013, The Pew Charitable Trusts<\/a> concluded that the regulatory system is \u201cplagued with systemic problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

The key problem dates back to the 1958 amendment to the FFDCA, which provided an exemption for substances \u201cgenerally recognized as safe\u201d (GRAS) \u2013 an exemption that has been stretched so far it has swallowed the law. Today, an estimated 1,000 chemicals have been designated as GRAS by additive and food manufacturers without review by or even notice to FDA, the agency charged with ensuring that our food is safe and improves public health. Pew\u2019s analysis confirmed the Government Accountability Office\u2019s conclusion in 2010 that \u201cFDA\u2019s oversight process does not help ensure the safety of all new GRAS determinations<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among Pew\u2019s findings:<\/p>\n