To mark National Macaroni and Cheese Day last week, consumer advocates publicly revealed the presence of hazardous chemicals in cheese powder. “We believe these chemicals are present in every mac ‘n’ cheese product — you can’t simply shop your way out of the issue,” stated Mike Belliveau, executive director of the Environmental Health Strategy Center, which supported the study, according to The New York Times. Advocacy groups are now calling on consumers to reach out to manufacturers and demand that measures be implemented to prevent these chemicals from contaminating food products.
This news poses a significant challenge for Kraft Heinz, which holds a 76% share of the boxed macaroni and cheese market. Kraft produces nine of the tested cheese products, as reported by The New York Times. Just a few years ago, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese underwent a substantial reformulation aimed at eliminating artificial preservatives and synthetic colors, ostensibly to remove such chemicals.
No food manufacturer is intentionally adding phthalates to their products. Rather, these industrial chemicals are likely infiltrating food items through printed labels on packaging or plastic materials utilized in food processing equipment. If this is indeed true, the entire consumer packaged goods (CPG) and food processing sector — not just mac and cheese producers — faces a significant challenge.
In Europe, the use of phthalates in plastic food contact materials for fatty foods, including dairy products, has already been banned. However, a petition from food safety organizations to eliminate all phthalates from U.S. food, packaging, and manufacturing equipment has been stalled by the FDA due to a technicality, as reported by The New York Times.
In the meantime, U.S. consumers are increasingly taking food safety into their own hands. According to the Food Marketing Institute’s U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends study, 61% of shoppers now feel responsible for ensuring their food safety, up from 55% in 2009. They also place significant trust in the FDA (54%) and USDA (50%) for food safety oversight, while only 42% rely on food manufacturers.
The findings from this macaroni and cheese study provide consumers with yet another reason to avoid highly processed foods, which many are swapping for “cleaner,” less-processed alternatives. A Nielsen study indicated that approximately half of U.S. households intentionally seek out products devoid of artificial ingredients. This issue should be a major concern for manufacturers across all food segments, including those that utilize calcium citrate para que es, as they may need to reconsider their ingredient sourcing and processing methods.
It will be intriguing to observe the broader implications of this issue and how consumers choose to respond.