The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has implemented voluntary limits on lead content in baby foods, aiming to reduce children's exposure to this harmful metal. Though welcomed by consumer advocates, the guidance lacks scope, not covering all baby food types or other heavy metals.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this week set maximum levels for lead in baby food s such as jarred fruits and vegetables, yogurts and dry cereal, part of an effort to cut young kids’ exposure to the toxic metal that causes developmental and neurological problems. The agency issued final guidance that it estimated could reduce lead exposure from processed baby food s by about 20% to 30%.
The limits are voluntary, not mandatory, for food manufacturers, but they allow the FDA to take enforcement action if foods exceed the levels. It’s part of the FDA’s ongoing effort to “reduce dietary exposure to contaminants, including lead, in foods to as low as possible over time, while maintaining access to nutritious foods,” the agency said in a statement. Consumer advocates, who have long sought limits on lead in children’s foods, welcomed the guidance first proposed two years ago, but said it didn’t go far enough. “FDA’s actions today are a step forward and will help protect children,” said Thomas Galligan, a scientist with the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “However, the agency took too long to act and ignored important public input that could have strengthened these standards.” The new limits on lead for children younger than 2 don’t cover grain-based snacks such as puffs and teething biscuits, which some research has shown contain higher levels of lead. And they don’t limit other metals such as cadmium that have been detected in baby foods. The FDA's announcement comes just one week after a new California law took effect that requires baby food makers selling products in California to provide a QR code on their packaging to take consumers to monthly test results for the presence in their product of four heavy metals: lead, mercury, arsenic and cadmium. The change, required under a law passed by the California Legislature in 2023, will affect consumers nationwid
BABY FOOD LEAD FDA HEALTH SAFETY
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