DeLauro Introduces Legislation to Protect Food Supply from Dangerous Chemicals

Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) introduced the Toxic Free Food Act, legislation that would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to close the 'General Recognized as Safe' (GRAS) loophole and make chemical food additives subject to FDA approval and oversight. She also submitted public comment to the FDA, as they work to develop a post-market assessment system of chemicals in foods, urging the agency to close the GRAS loophole that allows companies to self-certify new ingredients are safe for consumers and voluntarily decide whether to notify the FDA of their conclusions.

"When Americans are shopping at the grocery store, they should be confident that the food they are purchasing is safe for consumption and does not contain any harmful chemical additives that could result in illness or death," said Congresswoman DeLauro. "The GRASloophole allows companies to decide themselves whether additives are safe to add or not, skirting FDA oversight and allowing for potentially dangerous chemicals to reach market. That cannot stand. I have urged the FDA to close this loophole, and I am proud to introduce the Toxic Free Food Act to ensure that chemical food additives are subject to FDA approval."

The GRAS loophole was originally intended to cover ingredients that are already known to be safe, such as vegetable oil, flour, baking soda, and spices. In 1997, the FDA loosened the existing protocol, creating the "voluntary notification" system. Now, companies themselves are allowed to declare substances as GRAS, allowing hundreds of new chemicals to be introduced in our foods with little to no FDA oversight.

The Toxic Free Food Act would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to incorporate certain requirements into its regulations about Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) food substances, including specific restrictions on substances that cause cancer or human reproductive or developmental toxicity. You can find bill text here.

"None of us should have to worry about whether the food we eat and feed to our families is safe," said Environmental Working Group Policy Director Jessica Hernandez. "For too long the FDA has allowed the food and chemical industry to decide whether certain chemicals, like toxic "forever chemicals" known as PFAS, are safe to eat. The Toxic Free Food Act will protect consumers by putting the FDA back in charge of food safety, not the food and chemical companies. EWG applauds Congresswoman DeLauro for her leadership on this important public health issue."

"Current regulations that allow food manufacturers to self-regulate and determine the safety of food chemicals without any FDA review is completely unacceptable," said Brian Ronholm, Director of Food Policy for Consumer Reports. "The Toxic Free Food Act would close this dangerous loophole and stop this secret process that hides safety data, and allow the FDA to determine the safety of substances added to food."

"Food companies are allowed to add chemicals to foods without ever notifying or providing safety data to the FDA. The Toxic Free Food Act is a much-needed step to empower the FDA to protect consumers from harmful chemicals in our foods." - President of Center for Science in the Public Interest, Peter Lurie, MD, MPH

DeLauro also submitted written comments to FDA for their public meeting on developing post-market assessments of chemicals in foods, urging the agency to close the GRAS loophole.

"For too long, this loophole and FDA inaction has failed to keep us safe from chemicals added to our food," DeLauro wrote. "…To rebuild consumer confidence, the FDA must take bold action to ban or restrict food chemicals of concern, and to reassert its regulatory role and close the loopholes that allow the chemical companies to voluntarily decide which chemicals are safe for consumers."

You can find DeLauro's full comment here.