WASHINGTON – The Environmental Working Group applauds Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) for today introducing legislation that would significantly improve the safety of the U.S. food supply.
The Grocery Reform and Safety Act would, if enacted. reform food chemical regulation by amending the “generally recognized as safe,” or GRAS, loophole, which allows companies to add new, potentially harmful additives and other substances to food without safety review by the Food and Drug Administration. Instead, companies can declare their chemicals are safe and bypass federal pre-market review – even if the FDA has never assessed the substances’ safety.
An EWG analysis found that nearly 99% of all food chemicals introduced since 2000 were greenlighted for use through the GRAS loophole.
Pallone’s bill, if enacted, would close the loophole and require companies to submit safety data to the FDA showing their chemicals are safe. The bill would also require the FDA to re-review chemicals already in our food supply.
The following is a statement from EWG Senior Vice President for Government Affairs Scott Faber:
No one has done more to make our food safe than Rep. Pallone.
His new Grocery Reform and Safety Act would finally close the loophole that lets food and chemical companies decide, in secret, whether new chemicals are safe to eat.
It would also ensure that older chemicals, those already in our food, are regularly re-evaluated in light of the latest science.
Rep. Pallone’s legislation builds on his remarkable record of consumer protection, and EWG is grateful he is once again putting our health and safety first.
No one should have to worry about toxic chemicals in the food we serve to our families.
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The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.
