The UK Government has proposed rules that would prohibit the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under the age of 16, intended to “prevent obesity in up to 40,000 children and deliver health benefits worth tens of millions of pounds.”
Beginning September 1, the “Failure to Prevent Food Fraud” corporate offence under the UK Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act will make it so that large businesses can be held criminally accountable for acts of food fraud committed by an individual within the organization.
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.
The Senate Committee on Appropriations has approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which would restore some FDA funding and address some effects of the Trump Administration on the agency.
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.
Louisiana recently enacted Senate Bill 14, which HHS Secretary Kennedy called a “Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) bill,” targeting more than 40 food ingredients—such as seed oils, food colorings, sweeteners, and other additives—through product label disclosures and public school meal bans.
Current food safety oversight is spread across multiple federal, state, and local agencies, which Cotton says decreases efficacy, creates gaps, and slows response times to potential public health risks.
New York State Senator Brian Kavanagh, lead Senate sponsor of the legislation, says a key aim of the bill is to address major loopholes in federal food regulation.
Taking effect by the 2026–2027 school year, the Arizona Healthy Schools Act has been signed into law, banning “ultra-processed foods,” defined as foods containing any one of 11 artificial food dyes and additives, from being sold in schools.
With the passage of House Bill 81, Utah will ban the addition of fluoride to public drinking water systems beginning May 7, 2025. Community water fluoridation has come under scrutiny in recent years due to concerns about its affect on children’s IQ.
