Tyson Foods’ announcement this week that it is removing high-fructose corn syrup and three other additives from its products has firmly established a new commitment to better health by big food producers, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Friday.
“About 40 percent of the food industry is on board now, including Smuckers, General Foods and many others,” Kennedy exclusively told Breitbart News. “It’s all the big producers. And Tyson has been a leader from the beginning. I’m very grateful for their vision and commitment to their customers’ health.”
Tyson is the second largest food and beverage company in the United States. Its products include such popular brands as Tyson, Jimmy Dean, and Hillshire Farm.
“We continuously review and assess our product portfolio to ensure the highest quality products that meet the needs of consumers,” Donnie King, President & CEO of Tyson Foods, said in a statement this week. “Our decision to remove High Fructose Corn Syrup and other ingredients reflects our ongoing commitment to feeding the world like family, while preserving the taste, value and integrity that define our iconic brands.”
Earlier this year, reacting to Kennedy and President Donald Trump’s Make American Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, Tyson Foods removed petroleum-based synthetic dyes from its domestic branded products, even though the dyes being removed were FDA approved.
Researchers have long blamed high-fructose corn syrup as a leading contributor to America’s obesity problem. According to the prestigious Cleveland Clinic, the potent sweetener is full of “empty calories” and causes inflammation as well as weight gain.
President Trump also been critical of the corn syrup. In July, he announced he had been successful in convincing Coca-Cola to make its iconic drink with “real cane sugar.” The company confirmed but also said the cane sugar coke would be an addition to its product line and not replace the classic Coke.
Tyson has voluntarily decided to remove three other additives, including the artificial sweetener sucralose, also known as Splenda, which is 600 times more potent than table sugar. Animal studies have shown it can upset the crucial balance of digestive bacteria.
Also on Tyson’s removal list are the preservatives butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT).
BHA and BHT are used as preservatives in a variety of foods, including snack foods, cereals, meats, butter, chewing gum and potato chips, as well as cosmetic products and medications.
However, according to a report on carcinogens by the National Institutes on Health, “Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) is reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity from studies in experimental animals.”
Rounding out the Tyson list is Titanium dioxide (TiO2), a synthetically produced white pigment, which research shows can disrupt hormonal responses and blood sugar levels and can contribute to diabetes, obesity, and other health problems,
In March, Kennedy met with the top executives of major food producers to discuss the additives in the nation’s food supply.
“For far too long, ingredient manufacturers and sponsors have exploited a loophole that has allowed new ingredients and chemicals, often with unknown safety data, to be introduced into the U.S. food supply without notification to the FDA or the public,” Kennedy said at the time.
Before becoming HHS secretary, Kennedy, an environmental attorney, was already critical of the nation’s food supply, federal dietary recommendations, and the use of certain pesticides by farmers.
The health secretary and others believe these factors may be contributing to the alarming rise in chronic diseases among both adults and children in recent decades.
Kennedy said HHS will be introducing revised nutrition recommendations by the end of the year.
Contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times best seller House of Secrets and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.
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