Chemical Control

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Environmental inhibitors are compounds used in agriculture to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from animals or minimize nitrogen losses in soil. A new FAO report highlights the need for a harmonized approach to risk assessment of these compounds and suggests a potential framework.

An expert panel that was convened to support FDA’s “Operation Stork Speed” emphasizes the need for streamlined FDA approval processes for infant formulas, more transparent ingredient approval processes (i.e., GRAS, food additive petitions), and enforceable limits for environmental contaminants.

Florida unveiled the Healthy Florida First initiative, a MAHA-aligned product contaminant testing effort, alongside the initiative's first report focused on the presence of toxic heavy metals in infant formulas. Several products had elevated levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury.

A paper from the year 2000 suggesting the safety of glyphosate (the active ingredient in herbicide Roundup), which has been cited for decades in regulatory decisions and pesticide approvals, has been retracted after litigation revealed undisclosed conflicts of interest undermining the study’s integrity.

A Harvard Law report analyzes how federal preemption may impact the emerging patchwork of U.S. state bills on food chemical safety, categorizing the types of common legislation seen in 2025 and discussing possible legal and constitutional challenges.

A court has ruled in favor of a lawsuit filed against House Bill 2354, which was passed in March 2025 and would prohibit foods containing several food additives and dyes from sale in the state. The injunction does not apply to the bill’s provision banning seven food dyes from school meals.

A first-of-its-kind French study has demonstrated that food additives are consumed as mixtures by children and adults, underscoring the importance of considering combined exposures in food safety evaluations.

Some EU and UK food law changes in development could arrive sooner than expected, and others will take more time to go into effect. This article discusses food law changes to watch for in 2026.

This episode of Food Safety Five discusses a food safety issue that was covered in some of our most-read scientific articles of 2025: microplastics release from food contact materials and contamination of food.

FAO and WHO recently published a report identifying and prioritizing chemical contaminants that pose a food safety risk due to their presence in sources of water used in agri-food systems.