San Francisco took aim at some of the nation’s largest food manufacturers on Tuesday, filing a lawsuit that claims ultraprocessed foods from companies like Coca-Cola and Nestle are fueling a public health crisis.
According to The Associated Press, City Attorney David Chiu named 10 major companies in the suit, including makers of Oreo cookies, Sour Patch Kids, Kit Kat, Cheerios, and Lunchables.
The lawsuit alleges that ultraprocessed foods are linked to serious health conditions, including Type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease, heart disease, and cancer.
“They took food and made it unrecognizable and harmful to the human body,” Chiu said in a news release. “These companies engineered a public health crisis, they profited handsomely, and now they need to take responsibility for the harm they have caused.”
Chiu’s office described ultraprocessed foods as items designed to “stimulate cravings and encourage overconsumption,” often made from chemically manipulated, cheap ingredients with little or no whole food content.
The category includes candy, chips, processed meats, sodas, energy drinks, and breakfast cereals.
Other companies named in the lawsuit include PepsiCo, Kraft Heinz, Post Holdings, Mondelez International, General Mills, Kellogg, Mars Incorporated, and ConAgra Brands.
Public concern over ultraprocessed foods has grown in recent years. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has highlighted their links to chronic disease, pushing to remove such items from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
A CDC report in August found that most Americans consume more than half of their calories from ultraprocessed foods.
In October, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law to phase out certain ultraprocessed foods from school meals over the next decade.
The lawsuit cites scientific research connecting ultraprocessed foods to a range of health problems.
“Mounting research now links these products to serious diseases—including Type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease, heart disease, colorectal cancer, and even depression at younger ages,” said University of California, San Francisco professor Kim Newell-Green.
San Francisco’s suit claims the companies violated California’s Unfair Competition Law and public nuisance statute.
It seeks court orders to prevent deceptive marketing, require consumer education, limit advertising to children, and impose financial penalties to offset local healthcare costs associated with ultraprocessed foods.
The legal battle marks one of the most ambitious municipal efforts yet to hold food manufacturers accountable for public health impacts linked to highly processed products.
