Washington, D.C.— A new report from the Center for American Progress outlines a comprehensive plan to protect Americans from unsafe food, contaminated drinking water, and toxic chemicals in everyday products. The new report continues to build out CAP’s new science-based agenda that would remove corporate and political influence from regulatory agencies and empower families to make healthy choices.
Americans overwhelmingly express concerns about the safety of the products they consume. 176 million Americans are drinking water that has tested positive for cancer-linked forever chemicals, 1 in 6 Americans gets sick from contaminated food every year, ultra-processed foods account for 70 percent of packaged foods and beverages in the United States, and nearly 14 million children face food insecurity. Yet the Trump administration has rolled back protections against toxic chemicals, weakened food safety enforcement, and cut nutrition programs.
“The Trump administration has weakened safeguards that protect the safety of food, drinking water, and consumer products, undermining public health,” said Jill Rosenthal, director of public health policy at CAP and co-author of the report. “Americans want their government to put their health and safety above corporate profits. By strengthening oversight, empowering families, and investing in programs that promote access to toxic-free and minimally processed products, we can prevent harm and improve lives.”
CAP outlines a series of actions to strengthen consumer protections and improve Americans’ health, including:
- Stronger oversight of toxic chemicals. CAP proposes establishing stronger federal limits on heavy metals in food, especially foods that are consumed by children, banning dangerous pesticides, and restoring PFAS protections in drinking water.
- Restoring food safety inspections and corporate accountability. CAP urges leaders to adequately fund the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to improve food contamination tracking, oversight of infant formula safety, and corporate accountability.
- Closing loopholes on unsafe ingredients. CAP proposes an end to the “Generally Recognized As Safe” loophole that allows food manufacturers to declare ingredients as safe without FDA oversight. Additional proposals include strengthening safety reviews of cosmetics and dietary supplements before they reach consumers and requiring companies to disclose potentially harmful ingredients.
- Clearer information for families. CAP outlines requiring easy-to-understand nutrition labels on the front of food packaging, strengthening protections against misleading marketing, and limits to marketing of unhealthy food to children.
- Greater access to affordable, healthy food. CAP’s plan outlines expanding incentives for fruits and vegetables, investing in local farmers and food systems, restoring nutrition assistance programs, and ensuring underserved communities have access to nutritious foods.
- Protecting underserved communities. CAP recommends solutions to address the root causes of unequal exposure to harm and to expand access to safe, healthy, affordable food and products for all communities.
- Trusting independent science over corporate influence. CAP highlights the need to strengthen federal consumer protection agencies, improve product recalls and enforcement, and ensure federal dietary guidelines are backed by scientific evidence.
Read the report: “A Plan To Provide Americans With Healthy and Safe Food, Drinking Water, and Consumer Products” by Jill Rosenthal and Kierra Jones
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Christian Unkenholz at [email protected].