US Government Cracks Down on Hidden Food Ingredients

HHS wants food makers to tell the FDA about self-approved ingredients and is defining 'ultra-processed foods' for the first time.

The U.S. government wants to know more about what's really in your food. On Monday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS — the federal agency in charge of public health) announced new proposals to give regulators better insight into the nation's food supply.

What's the main change? Right now, food companies like PepsiCo or Nestlé can decide on their own that a new ingredient is safe. This is called being "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS) — a rule that lets companies skip the FDA's usual approval process if experts agree the ingredient is safe.

The catch? Companies don't have to tell anyone when they make that decision. The new proposal would require them to notify the FDA (Food and Drug Administration — the agency that regulates food and medicine) whenever they classify an ingredient as GRAS.

Key facts to know:

Nearly 60% of the average American diet is made up of ultra-processed foods.
More than 1 in 5 American children are affected by obesity.
The rule would NOT block companies from selling products — it just gives the FDA more visibility.
Food advocates have called GRAS reform the most important food change needed in the U.S. for 20 years.

Why now? The announcement follows a summer of foodborne illness outbreaks, including cases linked to shredded lettuce, salsa, and guacamole (involving bacteria like salmonella and listeria). However, experts note these new proposals don't directly fix the causes of those outbreaks — they target broader concerns about ingredient safety.

Ultra-processed foods in focus HHS and the U.S. Department of Agriculture also submitted the government's first-ever official definition of "ultra-processed foods" for review — though they haven't yet revealed what that definition says. This is a key goal of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s "Make America Healthy Again" campaign.

The bottom line: These are proposals, not final rules. They must go through public comment and the federal rulemaking process before anything takes effect. For everyday shoppers, the goal is simple: more transparency about what goes into your food.

This is an AI-generated summary. Read the original article at: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/10/hhs-makes-announcements-on-gras-ultraprocessed-food.html