As Washington and the states raced to redefine food safety and trade, companies braced for higher tariffs, stricter ingredient rules, and shifting consumer expectations

It’s been a raucous year in the world of food, with tariffs, sweeping regulations, the MAHA movement and other groundbreaking political and economic events constantly reshuffling the deck. The food industry spent much of 2025 navigating a maze of new political, regulatory and consumer pressures that few could have predicted a year ago. Global trade instability, a revived focus on food safety reform and intensifying scrutiny of additives all coalesced to create one of the most volatile business landscapes in recent memory. The year started off with a bang, as countries across the globe, most notably the United States’ closest trade partners Canada and Mexico, faced unprecedented trade hurdles launched by the incoming Trump administration. Many of the world’s biggest food companies – such as Kellogg, Ferrero, Mondelēz International, Nestlé and Unilever – reported relatively strong full-year financials, but they warned of a stormy year ahead. Then came the on-again, off-again tariff threats from the administration. In March, the proposed 25% tariff on steel and aluminum caused the Dow Jones Industrial Average to tumble. The year could end with some resolution, as the US Supreme Court is still considering a challenge to the tariff regime, which challenges the president’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 to impose the tariffs. A decision by the US Supreme Court could spark lawsuits from companies, such as Costco , arguing that tariffs illegally imposed by the Trump administration cost them hundreds of millions of dollars. It was also a big year for the FDA’s oft-criticized self-affirmed GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) system, which is used to more easily approve ingredients in foods without a formal review. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., directed the FDA in March to explore eliminating the self-affirmed GRAS system . Companies could face premarket approval requirements for new products or possibly post-market re-evaluations. Heightened scrutiny could mean slowing down the process of bringing new products to market. But if the feds fail to make a change, the states might do it themselves . Proposals like Pennsylvania’s Show Us Your Science Act require GRAS disclosures at the state level. State legislatures across the nation are increasingly scrutinizing food ingredients and taking action, often alongside momentum from MAHA. With California leading the charge, as many as a dozen states have banned food dyes and other chemicals, with a particular focus on food served to children. The state-level ingredient revolt kicked off in 2023 with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signing of the California Food Safety Act , which bans the use of brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propyl paraben and Red Dye No. 3, beginning in 2027. The FDA already plans to ban the dye early next, and six others will get axed by the end of 2026. The Department of Health and Human Services also released its Make American Children Healthy Again report in September, offering 128 recommendations on chronic disease and nutrition. Critics said the report was short on details . The report said the four big drivers of chronic disease in children include poor diets with ultra-processed foods; aggregation of environmental chemicals; lack of physical activity and chronic stress; and overmedicalization. “Coupled with rising screen addiction and sedentary lifestyles, these factors are converging to produce a chronically stressed, sick and isolated generation,” the report stated. Consumer advocacy group The Center for Science in the Public Interest, called the report a “hodgepodge of half-baked science and the Secretary’s pet peeves.” MAHA got a win in mid-December with Congressional approval for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which allows whole and 2% milk back into school lunchrooms. While not a focus of the report, the Make American Children Healthy Again report also advised that children “consume whole milk and other dairy products are rich sources of calcium, vitamin D, and bioactive fatty acids, which support bone health, help regulate inflammation and may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.” Critics said the bill is bad for kids and a handout to the dairy industry. The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission were directed by the Trump administration in early December to launch a Food Supply Chain Security Task Forces to investigate price-fixing in the food supply chain. The task force comes as the price of food increases in the US, and food inflation is seen as a threat to Republican candidates in the midterm elections. The executive order establishing the task forces focuses on potential price-fixing by US companies and those abroad.