Guidelines for food manufacturers are voluntary and cover packaged processed food for children under two years old
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued some new voluntary guidelines for baby food manufacturing companies in an effort to reduce levels of lead in some processed baby foods.
The new guidelines state that baby food manufacturers should include no more than 10 parts per billion (ppb) of lead in foods such as yoghurt, custard, pudding and a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains and meats. For single-ingredient root vegetables and dry cereals, the guideline is set at no more than 20ppb.
According to the FDA, it is not possible to remove lead entirely from the environment or the food supply as lead is “widely present in the environment due to both its natural occurrence and to human activities that have introduced it into the environment”.
But the agency said that establishing and setting action levels such as the ones in the guidelines released on Monday “can help lower levels of contaminants in foods when a certain level of a contaminant is unavoidable”.
In a news release, the FDA said that the measures were part of an initiative that seeks to “reduce dietary exposure to contaminants, including lead, in foods to as low as possible over time, while maintaining access to nutritious foods”.
The guidance, which was first proposed two years ago, covers packaged processed foods for children under the age of two years old, and includes foods in jars, pouches, tubs or boxes, and may include ready-to-eat foods like purees, as well as semi-prepared foods like dry infant cereals.
However, the guidance does not cover infant formula, beverages, or snack foods such as puffs and teething biscuits, according to the agency. (Action levels for lead in juices are addressed in a separate draft guidance, the agency said.)
The guidelines are not binding or mandatory for food manufacturers, the agency said, but are rather “intended to encourage manufacturers to maintain lead levels in processed food intended for babies and young children below the action levels”.
But the FDA stated that it would take action levels, in addition to other information, into account when considering whether to bring enforcement in specific cases.
Following the FDA’s announcement of new guidelines, Thomas Galligan, principal scientist for food additives and supplements with the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer advocacy organization, described the new measures as “a step forward” that will “help protect children”.
However, Galligan argued that “the agency took too long to act and ignored important public input that could have strengthened these standards”.
“Importantly, the action levels finalized today are not binding limits but rather are non-binding recommendations to industry,” he said. “We hope that even voluntary levels will motivate industry to change its practices to protect kids.”
According to the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, exposure to lead can seriously harm a child’s health and can cause “well documented health effects”, including damage to the brain and nervous system and slowed growth and development.
Between October 2023 and April 2024, more than 550 children across more than 40 states in the US became sick after consuming cinnamon apple puree and applesauce products that contained elevated levels of lead.
Article Credit: theguardian