The Ensuring Safe and Toxic-Free Foods Act of 2025 would set stricter requirements for manufactures to decide a food ingredient is “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS). It also sets an annual quota of GRAS notices for FDA to review, and lays the groundwork for a systematic chemical reassessment process.
U.S. Representatives have reintroduced the Food Chemical Reassessment Act of 2025 to Congress, which would require FDA to reevaluate the safety of chemicals—including “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) substances, food dyes, and food contact substances—every three years.
The Trump administration released its "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) Report on May 22, laying a foundation for the overhaul of government policy on childhood nutrition, food chemicals, environmental toxins found in food contact materials, and other concerns.
Additional resources and authorities, made possible by user fees for the regulated food industry, could enable FDA to better monitor the food supply and review the safety of ingredients, argues a new expert policy analysis.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) has directed FDA to explore ways to eliminate the “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) rule, which is considered by critics to be a “loophole” that enables ingredients to enter the food supply without oversight or a formal safety review.
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) will hold a virtual workshop series in March to help food producers gain a clear understanding of FDA’s “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) determination process.
This episode of Food Safety Five covers a new EU regulation that limits PFAS in food packaging and bans single-use plastics for fruit and vegetables under a certain weight, among other changes. Also discussed is a bill introduced to the New York State legislature to ban certain food additives and tighten requirements for GRAS ingredients.
If enacted during the New York State budget process in March, the Food Safety and Chemical Disclosure Act would require food companies to disclose their use of any “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) ingredients, and would ban some additives and dyes from foods sold or made in New York or in its schools.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued an executive order that mandates state agencies explore the safety of ultra-processed foods, food dyes, and "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) ingredients, and recommend actions to mitigate the adverse health effects.
In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we discuss the top food safety stories of 2024 and their implications, including high-profile foodborne illness outbreaks, the ongoing avian flu outbreak in poultry and dairy cattle, FDA’s Human Foods Program restructuring, rising concerns and evolving legislation around food additives and chemical contaminants, and other topics.
