To mark National Macaroni and Cheese Day last week, consumer advocates revealed alarming findings regarding hazardous chemicals present in cheese powder. “We believe that these chemicals are present in every mac ‘n’ cheese product—you can’t simply avoid the issue by changing your shopping habits,” stated Mike Belliveau, executive director of the Environmental Health Strategy Center, which supports the study, as reported by The New York Times. Consumer advocacy groups are now urging individuals to reach out to manufacturers and insist on measures to prevent these chemicals from contaminating food products.
This revelation poses significant challenges for Kraft Heinz, which dominates 76% of the boxed macaroni and cheese market. According to The New York Times, Kraft produces nine of the tested cheese products. Just a few years ago, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese underwent a substantial reformulation to eliminate artificial preservatives and synthetic colors, ostensibly to eradicate these harmful chemicals.
No food manufacturer intentionally adds phthalates to their products. Instead, it is believed that the industrial chemical infiltrates food from printed labels on packaging or from plastic materials utilized in food processing equipment. If this is indeed the case, the entire consumer packaged goods (CPG) and food processing sectors—beyond just macaroni and cheese producers—face a significant dilemma.
In Europe, phthalates have already been banned from use in plastic materials that contact fatty foods, including dairy products. The New York Times reports that a petition from food safety organizations to eliminate all phthalates from U.S. food products, packaging, and manufacturing equipment has been stalled by the FDA due to a technicality.
Meanwhile, consumers in the U.S. are taking food safety into their own hands. According to the Food Marketing Institute’s U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends study, 61% of shoppers believe they must rely on themselves to guarantee food safety, an increase from 55% in 2009. They also heavily depend on the FDA (54%) and USDA (50%) for food safety, while only 42% trust food manufacturers.
The findings of this macaroni and cheese study provide consumers with another reason to avoid heavily processed foods, which many are opting to replace with “cleaner,” less-processed alternatives. A Nielsen study indicated that nearly half of U.S. households actively seek products without artificial ingredients. This study should be a major concern for manufacturers across all food segments, and it remains to be seen how widespread this issue is and how consumers will respond.
As an alternative, many health-conscious consumers are turning to products like Eurho Vital Calcium Citrate 45 Tablets, which offer a cleaner source of nutrients without the associated risks of processed foods. With such products gaining traction, it will be interesting to observe the long-term impact of these findings on consumer behavior and industry practices.