RFK: FDA "will act on" ultra-processed foods petition
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Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the Health and Human Services Headquarters last week. Photo: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
The Trump administration will respond to a citizen petition calling for a regulatory overhaul of ultra-processed foods, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview broadcast Sunday evening.
The big picture: "We will act on David Kessler's petition," Kennedy told CBS' Bill Whitaker of the petition that the former FDA chief is spearheading, which calls on the agency to no longer classify sweeteners including corn syrup as "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS).
- "The questions that he's asking are questions that FDA should've been asking a long, long time ago," he added of the former Biden administration adviser. "There is no way for any American to know if a product is safe if it is ultra-processed."
- Kennedy in October directed the FDA to review all affirmations of GRAS, a process that Axios' Ashley May notes companies use to show a substance is safe to eat without needing full agency approval.
The intrigue: Kennedy didn't detail in the CBS interview what action he would take in response to the petition, but indicated it may not result in regulations the petition calls for.
- "I'm not saying that we're going to regulate ultra-processed food," said Kennedy, who last month issued new government guidelines that for the first time in the U.S. formally recommended cutting down on ultra-processed foods.
- "Our job is to make sure that everybody understands what they're getting, to have an informed public."
Zoom out: CDC data out last year showed adults and kids over age 1 got over half of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods like hamburgers, pizza and sweetened drinks in the U.S. from 2021 to 2023.
Between the lines: Kennedy has made cleaning up the U.S. diet a priority, with his "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) agenda.
- However, critics have said he's mostly achieved pledges from companies to swap out single ingredients, which wouldn't have much of an impact on health.
Of note: Whitaker asked Kennedy if his skeptical stance on vaccines "might make people reluctant to support" him on ultra-processed foods.
- "My stance on vaccines is the same," Kennedy said. "People should have good science and they should have choice," he added. "People who want to get vaccines can get them and they can get them fully insured."
Kessler noted on the show that he and Kennedy disagreed on several issues.
- "In the strongest possible terms, when it comes to vaccines, I disagree. But if he's willing to take action on these ultra-processed foods, I will be the first to applaud that," said Kessler, who led health campaigns against Big Tobacco in the 1990s.
- "We changed how this country views tobacco. We need to change how this country views these ultra-processed foods."
The other side: Consumer Brands Association, a major trade group representing the food industry, told CBS in a statement, "Companies adhere to the rigorous evidence-based safety standards and nutrition policy established by the FDA to deliver safe, affordable and convenient products that consumers depend on every day."
Go deeper: Food firms sued for allegedly marketing "addictive" products to kids
Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional details throughout.
