The Food and Drug Administration permits ingredients deemed Generally Recognized as Safe, or GRAS, to be added to foods. Current agency rules allow companies using a food additive to self-affirm its GRAS status—without making any safety data public.

Due to this "secret GRAS" loophole, industry can decide that a chemical is safe—and start using it in your food—without any independent review.

CSPI's position is that it's the FDA’s job to review the data and decide what’s safe, and that it should make GRAS decisions mandatory and public, not voluntary and secret.

Until the law and the FDA's rules are updated, consumers have to decide for themselves what food additives they consider acceptable. CSPI helps make this easier by maintaining Chemical Cuisine—an evidence-based, one-stop list of current food additives with safety ratings.

We also keep a list of additives that have been banned for use in food products due to safety concerns.