This story makes me really, really angry. Consumer Reports, which is an independent, nonprofit org, has found that Lunchables contain “relatively high levels” of lead, cadmium, and sodium. The sodium levels were almost one half of the daily recommended limit for a child. That’s pretty worrisome, but the amount of lead and phthalates (a chemical used with plastics) is absolutely terrifying. My kids don’t eat Lunchables on the regular, but they do eat them from time-to-time as a special treat. CR’s findings are so troublesome that the organization is trying to get Lunchables removed from the National School Lunch Program.
Consumer Reports is calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to remove Lunchables and similar lunch kits from the National School Lunch Program. The organization made the announcement on April 9 after a test of 12 store-bought versions of Lunchables and similar lunch and snack kits found “relatively high levels” of lead, cadmium and sodium. The sodium levels in the kits reportedly ranged from 460 to 740 milligrams per serving — nearly a quarter to half of a child’s daily recommended limit.
Additionally, all but one of the kits contain harmful phthalates, a group of chemicals found in plastics that the National Institute of Health states is “detrimental to human health” and can lead to reproductive problems, diabetes, obesity, certain types of cancer and more. A spokesperson for Kraft Heinz, maker of Lunchables, tells PEOPLE that the company has “taken great steps to improve the nutrition profile of Lunchables,” including reducing the sodium in all Lunchables crackers by 26%.
“All our foods meet strict safety standards that we happily feed to our own families. We are proud of Lunchables and stand by the quality and integrity that goes into making them,” the spokesperson said. “According to current science, processed foods arbitrarily classified as ‘ultra-processed’ are not necessarily less nutritious. In fact, many processed foods contain added nutrients, providing even more benefits to the consumer. The classification of foods should be based on scientific evidence that includes an assessment of the nutritional value of the whole product, not restricted to one element such as a single ingredient or the level of processing.”
Along with Lunchables, CR’s test also included kits from Armour LunchMakers, Good & Gather, Greenfield Natural Meat Co., and Oscar Mayer. CR has since launched a petition to the USDA, already garnering over 10,000 signatures in favor of removing the popular lunch kits from the National School Lunch Program.
“Even in small amounts, lead and cadmium can cause developmental problems in children, with risks increasing from regular exposure over time,” the petition states. “And eating too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure: about 14 percent of children and teens have prehypertension or hypertension. Please remove these processed food kits from the lunch program, and offer our children healthier choices.”
“Lunchables are not a healthy option for kids and shouldn’t be allowed on the menu as part of the National School Lunch Program,” Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, said in a statement. “The Lunchables and similar lunch kits we tested contain concerning levels of sodium and harmful chemicals that can lead to serious health problems over time. The USDA should remove Lunchables from the National School Lunch Program and ensure that kids in schools have healthier options.”
About 28 million students each day in over 95,000 schools and educational institutions in the United States are provided with meals under the federal National School Lunch Program, according to the School Nutrition Association. About 19 million of those meals are free, while 8.5 million are paid in full and 1.1 million are served at a reduced price, according to the association report.
A spokesperson for the USDA tells PEOPLE: “USDA takes very seriously our responsibility to ensure school meals are of the highest nutritional quality. This is why we have a new proposed rule which aims to align our programs with the latest nutrition science and modernize our services to best serve kids. Strengthening the nutrition of school meals comes from a common goal we all share: to help kids be healthy.”
“Importantly, USDA doesn’t allow or disallow individual food items. Our requirements address the overall content of meals – some of them on a daily basis and others on a weekly basis. So, the Lunchables described in the article would need to be paired with fruit, vegetables and milk. In addition, a school who wanted to serve a higher sodium product one day has to balance that with lower sodium items on others,” the statement continued. “Many schools are taking steps to use more scratch cooked and local foods, and USDA has supported these efforts through expanded grants for equipment, training, and local food procurement.”
This is absolutely f–cking unacceptable. I’m so pissed that I need to address it one by one. First, we have the phthalates, which can lead to “reproductive problems, diabetes, obesity, certain types of cancer, and more.” Like, how many damn think pieces have we had lately that ponder why Americans are increasingly having all of these issues? I keep seeing Tweets from anti-vaxxers that blame the rising cancer rates on the Covid vaccine when really, the call has been coming from inside the cafeteria all along. And let’s talk about the lead. The Daily podcast talked about the lead found in applesauce pouches on their Feb. 29 episode. Just listening to what happened and *how* it could happen was infuriating.
Third, “taking great steps” to improve your product’s nutrition and only listing that you’re removing sodium and not some of the other ingredients with irreversible effects kinda gives away the game. Capitalism at its finest, #amirite?! Poison the children because it’s cheap and then when you get caught, take some of the salt out to say (now) you (kinda) care. Finally – and my understanding of this comes from listening to that The Daily episode, but the USDA and FDA need to step up their game because if Lunchables is meeting the “strict safety standards,” then we have a more serious problem. They need more funding and the entire industry needs to be overhauled with more regulation and better standards. It is simply unacceptable to let companies get away with feeding our children (and us; remember the two Hot Pockets recalls?) foods that can poison them and cause them lifelong problems.
