Ultra-Processed Foods Lawsuits

What are Ultra-Processed Foods?

Ultra-processed foods have many different yet similar definitions based on which health organization or food manufacturer provides the definition.

Typically, ultra-processed foods are considered to be foods that meet one or more of these conditions:

• Processed by more than one method before reaching its final product state.
• Final product state is significantly different from its original state.
• Contain multiple chemical additives, especially those not related to preservation.
• Contain sweeteners that are not naturally occurring.
• Contain little to no whole food ingredients.
• Offer little to no nutritional benefits or vitamins.
• Provide significantly more calories than similar foods that are processed less.

Common examples of ultra-processed foods include:

• Cookies
• Candies
• Soda or soft drinks
• Sports drinks
• Frozen meals
• Cans of soup
• Packaged or mass-produced breads
• Fruit drinks and yogurts
• Sweetened breakfast cereals
• Flavored potato chips
• Fast foods
• Energy drinks

Please note: We are no longer accepting clients for this litigation.

Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to Health Problems

Eating a diet of mostly ultra-processed foods has been linked to many different types of health problems. A review that was recently published by the British Medical Journal analyzed the results of 45 health studies with a collective total of 10 million participants. The findings suggested that a diet revolving around ultra-processed foods could be linked to dozens of health conditions, many of them serious or life-threatening.

Some of the most serious health conditions linked to ultra-processed foods are:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• Obesity
• Mental health disorders like depression
• Cancer
• Hypertension
• Insomnia
• Early risk of death

FDA Lacks Ultra-Processed Foods Regulations

The FDA currently allows an estimated 10,000 food additives to be used in foods made and sold in the United States. By comparison, the European Union has only approved 411 food additives. Doctors, health safety groups, and even prominent legislators like Senator Bernie Sanders have argued that the FDA’s acceptance of so many unnatural food additives is just one piece of evidence of the administration’s negligence in its duty to keep the American food market safe for consumers.

Furthermore, roughly 50% of those thousands of food additives are considered “Generally Recognized As Safe” or GRAS and the process to reach that determination is almost entirely based on self-reports made by food manufacturers, not through studies done by the FDA. One study by the Environmental Working Group concluded that 99% of the 766 food additives and chemicals introduced to the market between 2000 and 2021 were self-reported by manufacturers as GRAS, allowing those additives to avoid FDA review entirely. The argument has been made that a food manufacturer would be likely to report its chemical additive products as GRAS in pursuit of profit, even if it reasonably knew it was not safe for regular consumption.

Please note: We are no longer accepting clients for this litigation.

Continued Reading

• “The federal loophole that allows food companies to decide what’s safe for you to eat” (CBS News)