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6h ago

California Enacts First Law Defining, Phasing Out the Most Concerning Ultra-Processed Foods in School Meals

The measure tasks health officials with setting rules, starting a multi-year removal from cafeterias that culminates in a full ban by 2035.

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A selection of produce from California farmers and other food offered on the Belvedere Middle School menu is displayed before a news conference with Gov. Gavin Newsom, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles.
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Overview

  • Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 1264, the Real Food, Healthy Kids Act, making California the first state to legally define ultra-processed foods and begin removing the most concerning items from K-12 meals.
  • The statute defines ultra-processed foods as products high in saturated fat, added sugar or sodium that also contain additives such as flavors, colors, emulsifiers, thickeners or nonnutritive sweeteners, with exemptions for raw commodities and certain minimally processed foods.
  • The California Department of Public Health, working with University of California experts, must adopt regulations by June 1, 2028 to designate “UPFs of concern” and “restricted school foods.”
  • Vendor reporting starts Feb. 1, 2028; schools begin phasing out designated items by July 1, 2029; vendors are barred from offering them to schools by July 1, 2032; schools are prohibited from serving them by July 1, 2035.
  • Supporters cite CDC and NIH research on links to obesity, diabetes and other harms, while business and agriculture groups warn the definition could capture benign processed foods and increase costs for school districts.