WASHINGTON — Hundreds of families across the US are dealing with children who were poisoned by lead hiding in applesauce pouches marketed to kids. The ensuing recall made national headlines. It was a disturbing case study and something the Spotlight team has been reporting on for years - uncovering signs of contaminated baby food as far back as 2017. Nearly a decade later, there’s no final action from the FDA or Congress to protect kids.
In this half-hour special, National Correspondent Lisa Fletcher and Senior Producer Andrea Nejman reveal the FDA's blatant failure to act. From passing the buck, to quietly changing its own deadlines and refusing to break its silence, the reporting demonstrates how the agency has lost ground on its mission, and lost faith with those it is supposed to protect. In no-holds-barred exclusive interviews, you will meet the people who are on the front lines battling for change: from the halls of Congress and the courtrooms, to a mom who has taken matters into her own hands and nicknamed ‘the real FDA.’
A SERIOUS PROBLEM
There is a reason that lead was removed from gasoline and paint.
Lead is a toxic heavy metal. Science shows that exposure to it causes a permanent decrease in IQ, and increased risk of physical and neurological damage.
Heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury, have a cumulative effect in the body - meaning they build up over time. Even low levels of exposure to heavy metals can cause serious and often irreversible damage to brain development. Babies and children are most vulnerable to their neurotoxic effects.
A 2021 bombshell Congressional report found that manufacturers "knowingly sell baby food containing high levels of toxic heavy metals." Investigators found that industry self-regulation failed to protect consumers because manufacturers were permitted to set their own "dangerously high internal standards for toxic heavy metal levels." The report showed that baby food makers' internal practices allowed the companies to conceal higher levels of toxic metals in finished baby food products.
In the aftermath of the Congressional report, the Food and Drug Administration reacted, saying in part:
"The FDA takes exposure to toxic elements in the food supply extremely seriously, especially when it comes to protecting the health and safety of the youngest and most vulnerable in the population."
But a Spotlight on America investigation discovered the same agency that called the issue a high priority failed to act when it first appeared on its radar.
YEARS OF INACTION
The FDA says its work on this issue started long before 2017, telling us in a statement it takes "toxic elements in baby food very seriously," and established a workgroup years ago to "prioritize" the issue. However, in 2021, Congressional investigators found that workgroup had "not resulted in new or stronger regulations to protect babies," and said the FDA "failed to confront the risks of toxic heavy metals in baby food."
The Spotlight team has produced more than a dozen television investigations examining the issue of baby food.
We've tracked down and interviewed people who are key to putting this puzzle of inaction together:
- Leading scientists who say they brought data to the FDA in 2017 demonstrating high levels of dangerous, toxic metals in leading brands of baby food and the agency did nothing
- Attorneys who are taking the latest science, research and expert testimony to the courts on behalf of thousands of families who believe their children were damaged by "excessive levels" of toxic heavy metals in the food they trusted to feed their babies
- US lawmakers who have been fighting for change for years and calling-out colleagues for partisan gamesmanship at the expense of children's health
- State lawmakers who've had enough and are pushing, and passing, legislation that holds manufacturers to account when no one else will
You can find links to our past investigations below:
AN AGENCY ON THE CLOCK
Earlier this spring, the leading voice on this issue on the Hill, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., confronted the FDA's commissioner in a heated hearing, frustrated that three years had passed since the Congressional investigation exposing both dangerous inaction and ingredients, and that little's been done, leaving kids across America still consuming foods loaded with toxic heavy metals.
After Krishnamoorthi led the inquiry in 2021, the FDA created the Closer to Zero program, which was supposed to limit heavy metals in baby food by setting guidelines for industry. It was also supposed to inform consumers about these potentially dangerous ingredients not listed on the label.
"Unfortunately," Krishnamoorthi said, "they didn't follow through."
Three years later and Closer to Zero timelines have been repeatedly moved back, with not one final limit having been set. We discovered the agency quiety removed timelines from its website, making it nearly impossible for the public to hold them accountable. Because of our years of reporting on this issue, we have periodic screenshots of the agency's website.
Our 2021 archive shows the agency promised limits for lead and arsenic by April of 2024.
Those dates were erased from the FDA website and eventually replaced with "No Update."
"This is unacceptable. Completely unacceptable," Krishnamoorthi said to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf in a recent Congressional hearing.
Krishnamoorthi demanded to know where timelines stand but got no answer from Califf. In the weeks following the hearing, the agency again changed the dates, now targeting the end of 2025 for final guidelines.
THOUSANDS OF CASES
Kids across America are suffering from ADHD and Autism and many of their parents say it can be traced back to the food they ate at a time their bodies and brains were most vulnerable to the effects of toxic heavy metals.
"We have upwards of, I would say three to 4,000 families that we represent across the US," said Pedram Esfandiary.
Esfandiary is a partner at the Wisner Baum law firm, which launched the groundbreaking legal battle against several major baby food makers, alleging they knowingly sold food with "astronomical" amounts of toxic metals that has "wreaked havoc on the health of countless vulnerable children all so the defendants could maximize profits while deliberately misleading parents regarding the safety of their baby foods."
Esfandiary says a failure by the government to regulate manufacturers, and a failure by the manufacturers to regulate themselves has put families in the position of neither trusting the FDA nor baby food makers.
"And that is a pretty important story that we wanna tell the jury," said Esfandiary. "We're gonna say, listen, there is a reason for this. There is a reason why this specific child ate contaminated foods and suffered brain injury. It's because of the lack of laws and regulations."A POSITIVE STEP
In the absence of Congress passing a law that regulates contaminants in baby food, and the FDA's long-overdue guidelines for heavy metals, states are taking matters into their own hands. On Jan. 1, 2024, a new law went into effect in California that requires baby food manufacturers to test their products for heavy metals. This spring, Maryland passed a similar law with even stronger parameters: requiring testing of the final product and publication of those test results via a QR code on the food labels.
The Maryland law, dubbed "Rudy's Law," is sponsored by State Delegate Deni Taveras and written by her chief of staff, Jason Nunez. It is named after 18-month-old Rudy Callahan. Rudy is a Maryland toddler who was poisoned by lead after consuming high levels of the toxic heavy metal in Wanabana applesauce pouches. The Wanabana recall earlier this year impacted at least 500 children nationwide.
WHAT PARENTS SHOULD KNOW
According to experts the Spotlight team has interviewed, the best thing parents can do is to vary the foods their children eat. This reduces the risk of repeating exposure to toxins, some of which may be concentrated in certain foods. Knowing the key culprits can also help. Produce including root vegetables like carrots and sweet potatoes can absorb more heavy metals, as well as some leafy vegetables like spinach. Rice is often known to contain arsenic, making infant rice cereal a potential source of the toxic metal. Brown rice tends to contain higher levels of arsenic than white rice. Experts say parents should not eliminate these ingredients, but be mindful of the risks while keeping them a part of a varied diet.
It's also important to know that "organic" does not mean free of heavy metals. Organic means there are no synthetic pesticides or herbicides used. The only way to know if a product is free of heavy metals is to obtain testing from the manufacturer.
The Clean Label Project evaluates infant and baby foods for heavy metals and other harmful ingredients you won't find on the label. You can find information about their practices, and which products they certify as pure here.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Maryland and California have passed legislation that holds manufacturers accountable for testing their products for heavy metals, and several other states are weighing similar bills. But there's been no movement on the federal level.
In December 2023, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi introduced the INFANTS Act aimed at federally regulating what's in baby food through stricter guidelines and increased enforcement by the FDA. In May, Senator Amy Klobuchar introduced the companion bill in the US Senate, the Baby Food Safety Act of 2024.
Encouraging your member of Congress to move on this issue is as easy as calling their office or emailing and asking them to make this a priority. To find your members of Congress, and be directed to their contact information, click here.
You can watch and share our special coverage on YouTube here.
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