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Food Additives

How food companies sneak new ingredients past the FDA

Food manufacturers use a legal loophole to introduce new food ingredients without FDA review—endangering public health and leaving consumers in the dark about what’s in our food. Here’s what you should know about the FDA’s review process for new food ingredients, what’s in artificial and natural flavors, and how a new bill in New York could close this loophole for good.

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Chemical Cuisine

Our food additive safety ratings

Wondering which ingredients in your foods and beverages are safe? Our Chemical Cuisine database rates additives—used to preserve foods and affect their taste, texture, or appearance—from ‘safe' to 'avoid.'

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Caffeine Chart

How much is too much?

Caffeine is one of the only FDA-approved drugs that is present naturally and legally added to widely consumed foods. Exactly how much caffeine is there in the food and beverages you consume? CSPI has compiled the data.

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Who we are

We are your food and health watchdog

The Center for Science in the Public Interest is one of the oldest independent, science-based consumer advocacy organizations in the country. We work to improve how the nation eats, and we hold government and corporations accountable.

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Tell the FDA: Ensure Menu Labeling Requirements Apply to Third-Party Platforms

Ordering restaurant food through third-party platforms such as DoorDash, Grubhub, and Uber Eats is becoming very common, but labeling on these platforms is severely lacking. Submit a comment in support of menu labeling requirements on third-party platforms.

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From Nutrition Action

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Advocacy

Our issues

CSPI’s work improves the way America eats by transforming the food environment in schools, restaurants, grocery stores, and public places. We fight to keep our food supply free of dangerous chemicals and pathogens. We push government and industry to make transparent, science-based decisions.

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Healthy Cook's Kitchen Seafood book cover

Booklet

The Healthy Cook's Kitchen: Seafood

Eat seafood once or twice a week. That’s what health experts recommend. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a stable of simple, scrumptious, and healthy recipes to help you get there? That’s where we come in! In the third installment of The Healthy Cook’s Kitchen series, chef Kate Sherwood shares some of her favorite recipes. How does Poached Provencal White Fish sound? Or Snapper Tacos with Avocado Salsa? Mmm…

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