HHS Proposes Mandatory FDA GRAS Ingredient Reporting
Is this overhaul a vital safety fix or a regulatory overreach that will hurt consumers?
Above: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Aug. 10. Image credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images
The Spin
Narrative A
This is the type of great victory for food safety that Kennedy promised. The GRAS loophole for decades has quietly allowed manufacturers to slip untested chemicals into the food supply without telling the FDA. Mandatory notification means regulators will finally know what's entering the food and the public will no longer be used as unwitting test subjects.
Narrative B
The GRAS system has functioned well since 1958 and altering it like this risks spiking food prices and shrinking options for everyday consumers. Not to mention, the FDA will be flooded with thousands of submissions, creating a regulatory bottleneck that could take decades to clear. Kennedy seems determined to ruin the U.S. food supply.
