(1) Existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, provides for the regulation of various subjects relating to the manufacturing, processing, labeling, advertising, and sale of food, drugs, and cosmetics, under the administration and enforcement of the State Department of Public Health. Existing law requires a food additive, preservative, or color additive to be considered unsafe for use with respect to any food unless a regulation is adopted that limits the quantity and the use, or intended use, of the substance. A violation of these provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor.
This bill would define "ultraprocessed food" and would require the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment to adopt regulations on or before July 1, 2026, to define "particularly harmful ultraprocessed food." The bill would require the office, when defining particularly harmful ultraprocessed food, to consider specified factors, including, among others, whether, based on reputable peer-reviewed scientific evidence, a substance or group of substances are linked to health harms or adverse health consequences. The bill would require schools to begin to phase out particularly harmful ultraprocessed foods no later than January 1, 2028. Beginning January 1, 2032, the bill would prohibit a vendor from offering particularly harmful ultraprocessed foods to a school.
This bill, on or before February 1, 2027, and on or before February 1 of each year thereafter through February 1, 2032, would require a vendor to report specified information to the office for each food product sold to a school in the past calendar year, including, among others, the total quantity of food product sold to schools and whether that food product is an ultraprocessed food or particularly harmful ultraprocessed food. The bill, on or before July 1, 2027, and on or before July 1 of each year thereafter through July 1, 2032, would require the office, in consultation with the State Department of Education, to submit to the Legislature and the Governor a report that contains, among other things, a summary and analysis of the information reported to the office by vendors and recommendations for state and local legislative actions that could reduce the consumption of ultraprocessed foods and particularly harmful ultraprocessed foods in schools.
Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(2) Existing law requires the State Department of Education to develop and maintain nutrition guidelines for school lunches and breakfasts, and for all food and beverages sold on public school campuses. Existing law requires those nutrition guidelines to be consistent with the requirements for a nutritionally adequate breakfast and a nutritionally adequate lunch. Existing law defines a nutritionally adequate breakfast and a nutritionally adequate lunch for these purposes to mean those that qualify for reimbursement under the most current meal pattern for the federal School Breakfast Program and the federal National School Lunch Program, respectively.
Existing law requires a school district, county superintendent of schools, or charter school maintaining kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to make available a nutritionally adequate breakfast and a nutritionally adequate lunch, free of charge, during each schoolday to any pupil who requests a meal without consideration of the pupil's eligibility for a federally funded free or reduced-price meal. Existing law authorizes a school operated and maintained by a school district or county office of education, from the midnight before to 30 minutes after the end of the official schoolday, to sell food and beverages other than meals reimbursed by specified federal nutrition programs, only if the food or beverages meet dietary guidelines, as specified, depending on grade level.
This bill, beginning July 1, 2035, would prohibit a school district, county superintendent of schools, or charter school maintaining kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, from offering a nutritionally adequate breakfast or lunch that includes particularly harmful ultraprocessed foods, as provided, and would prohibit a school operated and maintained by a school district or county office of education from selling food or beverages, except for food items sold as part of a school fundraising event, containing those particularly harmful ultraprocessed foods, as provided. To the extent this bill would impose additional requirements on public schools, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Statutes affected:
04/21/25 - Amended Assembly: 49431 EDC, 49431 EDC, 49431.2 EDC, 49431.2 EDC, 49431.5 EDC, 49431.5 EDC, 49501.5 EDC, 49501.5 EDC, 49531 EDC, 49531 EDC
05/29/25 - Amended Assembly: 49431 EDC, 49431.2 EDC, 49431.5 EDC, 49501.5 EDC, 49531 EDC
06/23/25 - Amended Senate: 49431 EDC, 49431.2 EDC, 49431.5 EDC, 49501.5 EDC, 49531 EDC