Fresh Take Fridays Webinar — Understanding the GRAS Loophole and Food Additive Regulation in the U.S.

This webinar will provide an overview of U.S. regulation of chemicals added to food. The webinar will cover requirements for food additives and also how an exemption for ingredients that are “generally recognized as safe,” or GRAS, has usurped the FDA’s pre-market system. Today the exemption has swallowed the law and 99 percent of new food chemicals come onto the market through this loophole. Notification is voluntary under GRAS, meaning that the FDA is unaware of the full number and characteristics of chemicals currently used in food. The webinar will also discuss the political landscape and proposals for reform in the wake of increased public interest in food chemicals and new state-level policies.