Child Labour and Food Colouring

Welcome back Food Junglers. With Donald Trump being sworn in as the next President of the United States, I thought it fitting to focus this week’s issue on what’s been happening in the country, from food inflation to food dye bans. Let’s dig in.

This week:

📈 Inflation creeps upwards in the US as climate disasters worsen.

🏷️ The FDA wants to show you how safe your food is.

☕️ Starbucks creates a new code of conduct.

🍖 US Meat packers are going to have to pay for child labour.

🔴 A chemical is banned from all food products in the US…

CLIMATE
FOOD INFLATION AIN’T STOPPING

The cost of groceries in the US has increased 1.8% from a year earlier in December, rising at the fastest pace in more than a year, according to Labour Department data released last week.

Unfortunately, there isn’t one cause. Bird flu is killing chickens, cutting egg supplies; extreme heat has stunted coffee and cocoa production, and dry weather has decimated cattle.

Eggs are one of the primary drivers of food inflation. The index for eggs was up 37% from a year ago, according to Labour Department figures.

ZOOMING OUT: An uptick in the pace of food inflation presents a challenge for the incoming Trump administration, as climate-related food inflation is not something that can be easily fixed with policy changes.

For now, at least, it seems as though many Americans will be cautiously spending this winter.

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POLICY
LABELS EVERYWHERE

Under a new proposal from the US Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), food manufacturers would be required to put new labels on the front of packages flagging key nutrition information on salt, added sugar, and saturated fat.

The new labels, now placed on the front of the packaging, would indicate whether products are considered high, medium, or low in salt, added sugar, and saturated fat, which the FDA has warned can lead to chronic diseases when consumed in excess.

The move would potentially anger larger food companies, which argue that there is little evidence showing that front-of-package labels change consumer behaviour.

ZOOMING OUT: The rule is part of a Biden administration effort to improve American eating habits, following an increase in diet-related health problems, such as Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in the country.

BUSINESS
STARBUCKS’ CODE OF CONDUCT

Starbucks is rolling out a new code of conduct at its cafés across North America this month, aiming to improve guests’ and staff’s safety and experience.

Included in the shift is a reversal of a nearly seven-year policy of allowing the general public to linger or use the bathroom, regardless of whether they buy anything.

The chain’s policies include adding signs banning harassment, violence, threatening language, outside alcohol and smoking. The policy should take effect 27th January and will be implemented in almost all stores across North America.

ZOOMING OUT: The new code of conduct for customers is part of the giant’s effort to make its stores more hospitable, as it seeks to reverse a slide in customer traffic and falling sales. The question remains: can Starbucks reposition itself as a “strict” café?

SUPPLY CHAIN
MEATPACKERS PAY THE PRICE

Perdue Farms and JBS, two of the US’s biggest meatpackers, will pay a combined $8 million after the Department of Labour found the companies relied for years on migrant children to work in their slaughterhouses.

As an example, federal investigators found that children had been working at a Perdue plant on Virginia’s Eastern Shore as far back as 2020. The children, who had been hired by a staffing firm, worked late hours and performed dangerous tasks with electric knives and hot steel tools.

The White House announced in early 2023 that it would focus on rooting out violations and holding companies accountable. Last year, federal investigators found more than 4,000 children working in violation of child labour law.

ZOOMING OUT: The deals, announced last week, are part of a flurry of child labour settlements that have come in the last days of the Biden administration, which has been cracking down on the practice.

Federal child labour fines remain capped at $15,000 despite efforts to raise them.

HEALTH
FDA ON A ROLL

The FDA is banning the use of Red Dye No. 3, an artificial dye linked to cancer in animals, from food and ingested drugs.

The move will impact thousands of food products on the market in the US, including Betty Crocker’s loaded mashed potatoes and MorningStar Farms plant-based bacon strips. It is even in products that aren’t red, such as Brach’s candy corn.

Red Dye No. 3—made from petroleum and used to turn foods and drinks a bright, cherry-red colour—was approved by the FDA in 1969. The agency says it has evaluated the dye’s safety on multiple occasions since.

ZOOMING OUT: The ban follows growing scrutiny on artificial colours and other food additives and ingredients and after the FDA recently updated its definition of “healthy” as a marketing claim on food.

Food manufacturers will have until early 2027 to reformulate products that use Red Dye No. 3 as two studies have shown a link to cancer in male laboratory rats.

BEFORE YOU GO…

• The Federal Trade Commission on Friday sued PepsiCo, alleging that the beverage giant forced many consumers to pay higher prices by giving Walmart unfair pricing advantages.

• UK flag carrier British Airways will offer passengers free oat milk in Oatly’s jigger format onboard its short-haul and EuroFlyer flights.