Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a proposed new rule on Monday that would require food companies to disclose the addition of new ingredients in their products to the federal government. File Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/UPI | License Photo
Aug. 10 (UPI) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposed a new regulation on Monday calling for food companies to disclose the addition of new ingredients in their products to the government.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the proposed rule on Monday. The rule would require companies to demonstrate that new ingredients are safe by submitting data to the FDA.
"We don't know exactly how many chemicals are in the food that Americans eat every day, and the food industry continues to develop novel compounds and chemical combinations that do not exist in nature," Kennedy said. "Our bodies did not evolve consuming many of these substances, and that makes rigorous science and transparent safety review even more important."
The proposal would heighten the scrutiny of products that have been changed or are new altogether. Prior to this rule, food and beverage companies could release products with new ingredients without FDA review by saying the products are "generally recognized as safe."
