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California will phase out certain ultraprocessed foods from school meals over the next decade under a first-in-the-nation law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The law seeks to define ultraprocessed foods, the often super-tasty products typically full of sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. The legislation requires the state’s Department of Public Health to adopt rules by mid-2028 defining “ultraprocessed foods of concern” and “restricted school foods.”
Schools have to start phasing out those foods by July 2029, and districts will be barred from selling them for breakfast or lunch by July 2035. Vendors will be banned from providing the “foods of concern” to schools by 2032.
Newsom signed the measure at a local middle school in Los Angeles.
Newsom issued an executive order earlier this year requiring the Department of Public Health to provide recommendations by April on limiting harms from ultraprocessed foods. The Democratic governor signed a law in 2023 banning certain synthetic food dyes from school meals.
Legislatures across the country have introduced more than 100 bills in recent months seeking to ban or require labeling of chemicals that make up many ultraprocessed foods, including artificial dyes and controversial additives.
Americans get more than half their calories from ultraprocessed foods, which have been linked to a host of health problems, including obesity, diabetes and heart disease. However, studies haven’t been able to prove that the foods directly cause those chronic health problems.
Some school districts in California are already phasing out foods the law seeks to ban. Michael Jochner spent years working as a chef before taking over as director of student nutrition at the Morgan Hill Unified School District about eight years ago. He fully supports the ban.
Now they don’t serve any ultraprocessed foods, and all their items are organic and sourced within about 50 miles (80 kilometers) of the district, Jochner said. They removed sugary cereals, fruit juices and flavored milks, and deep-fried foods such as chicken nuggets and tater tots from their menus, he said.
This article was provided by The Associated Press.