Frequently having ultra-processed snacks, drinks and ready meals leads to a higher chance of having your life cut short, according to research, and San Francisco is suing manufacturers for promoting them. — TNS
San Francisco is suing makers of ultra-processed food that health experts say has led millions of Americans into obesity during decades of over-consumption, the US city said Dec 2 (2025).
In what officials said was a first-of-a-kind lawsuit, the California city is taking to task some of the largest names in groceries, including Kraft Heinz, Coca-Cola, Nestle and Kellogg.
“These companies created a public health crisis with the engineering and marketing of ultra-processed foods,” San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said.
“They took food and made it unrecognisable and harmful to the human body.”
Ultra-processed food, including candies, chips, soft drinks and breakfast cereals, are typically made from ingredients that have been broken down, chemically modified and combined with artificial additives.
They frequently contain colours, flavour enhancers, sweeteners, thickeners, foaming agents and emulsifiers, and typically cannot be produced in the home.
“Americans want to avoid ultra-processed foods, but we are inundated by them.
“These companies engineered a public health crisis, they profited handsomely, and now they need to take responsibility for the harm they have caused,” Chiu said.
The lawsuit lodged Dec 2 (2025), which is demanding unspecified damages, claims that around 70% of the products sold in US supermarkets are ultra-processed.
It says manufacturers employed a similar strategy to that of tobacco companies, pushing a product they knew was harmful with marketing that ignored or obscured the risks.
“Despite having actual knowledge of the harm they had caused, the ultra-processed food industry continued to inundate children with targeted marketing and make increasingly addictive products with little nutritional value,” a statement said.
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Sarah Gallo of the Consumer Brands Association, an umbrella grouping of many of the companies targeted in the suit, said manufacturers “support Americans in making healthier choices and enhancing product transparency”.
“There is currently no agreed-upon scientific definition of ultra-processed foods and attempting to classify foods as unhealthy simply because they are processed, or demonising food by ignoring its full nutrient content, misleads consumers and exacerbates health disparities.
“Companies adhere to the rigorous evidence-based safety standards established by the (government) to deliver safe, affordable and convenient products that consumers depend on every day.” – AFP
