4 minPolitics
Trump administration proposes rule to close food additive notification loophole
The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed a rule requiring food manufacturers to notify the FDA when they determine an added substance is Generally Recognized as Safe, a move aimed at increasing transparency in the U.S. food supply.
The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed a rule that would require food manufacturers to notify the Food and Drug Administration whenever they determine that an added substance is Generally Recognized as Safe, or GRAS. The measure is designed to close a regulatory loophole that currently allows companies to introduce new ingredients into the U.S. food supply without advance notice to federal regulators or the public.
Under the Food Additives Amendment passed by Congress in 1958, ingredients with a documented history of safe use or those that qualified experts had agreed were safe were exempted from the same pre-market approval process required for brand-new food additives. Everyday substances such as salt, vinegar, black pepper, and baking powder fall into this category. Over time, however, the exception became the rule, and manufacturers have been able to self-determine whether a new additive qualifies as GRAS and bring it to market without notifying the FDA.
The proposed rule would require the FDA to maintain a public list of GRAS notices, giving researchers, regulators, and consumers visibility into ingredients entering the marketplace. For substances already on the market, the administration is proposing a streamlined process to ensure the public has transparency about what is in their food. The move follows an issue brief published last year by the America First Policy Institute, which called for greater transparency and accountability in the GRAS process.
The need for reform is illustrated by the case of tara flour, a food additive that entered the food supply without the manufacturer submitting a GRAS notice to the FDA. After hundreds of illnesses and hospitalizations were later associated with the substance, the FDA conducted its own review and found that tara flour did not meet the standard for GRAS. The episode underscores the risks of a system in which regulators may have no advance notice when a new substance enters the supply chain.
Supporters of the rule argue that it is not a choice between consumer safety and a thriving food industry. Manufacturers that promote transparency in the products they sell benefit from consumer confidence, and companies that invest in safety should not be put at a disadvantage by a system that lets competitors introduce substances into the food supply without regulatory oversight. The proposal is part of a broader push by the administration to address food safety and transparency, including efforts to expand the «Product of USA» label and to put «real food» back on school lunch trays.
If finalized, the rule would give regulators insight into what is reaching the food supply, prevent manufacturers from circumventing transparent rules, and provide families with the facts they need to make their own choices about what they eat. The administration has framed the measure as a step toward restoring accountability in a system that has drifted far from its original purpose.
