Baby food really should not have lead or mercury in it. That seems obvious, but there is concern that the FDA is not adequately regulating the baby food industry to address the mounting concerns over toxic heavy metals in baby food.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel signed the letter petitioning the United States Food and Drug Administration to accelerate their efforts to remove toxic heavy metals from infant and toddler foods. The petition is asking the FDA to move faster to reach their “Closer to Zero” plan.
Nessel said, “There is no population more vulnerable than infants and toddlers, and action must take place swiftly to ensure that foods designed for growing children are safe to eat.”
The petition was prompted by a report from the U.S. House of Representatives’ Oversight and Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy that found high levels of toxic heavy metals like lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury, in many baby foods.
Rice cereal is of particular concern and the petition asks for the FDA to lower the acceptable level of inorganic arsenic in the popular “first solid food” of many infants.
Reporting for WGRT- Jennie McClelland
