NY Walks Away from Public Health: Lawmakers Fail to Protect Families from Big Food's Billion $$ Influence

ALBANY, NY (06/18/2025) (readMedia)-- The New York State Legislature adjourned last night without passing two key public health bills: the Predatory Marketing Prevention Act (PMPA) and the Sodium Warning Bill. Both had cleared the Senate but were not brought to a vote in the Assembly.

The PMPA (S397/A2584) would have curbed targeted, misleading food and beverage marketing aimed at children and adolescents-a tactic used by the food industry to shape kids' eating habits early and drive lifelong preferences for unhealthy products. The Sodium Warning Bill (S428/A5207) would have required chain restaurants to display a warning icon next to menu items containing more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium, the daily recommended limit.

"Big Food spends over $14 billion a year to market junk food-much of it aimed at kids who are still developing their tastes, habits, and health. These ads are designed to influence what children ask for, what families buy, and what ends up on the dinner table," said Dr. DeAnna Nara, Senior Policy Associate at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). "Meanwhile, families are left without the tools or transparency needed to make informed decisions. When children grow up surrounded by unhealthy choices, they're not being given a real chance to be healthy."

Sodium intake remains dangerously high in restaurant food and is a major contributor to hypertension, heart disease, and stroke-leading causes of death in New York State. In communities saturated with fast food outlets and limited access to nutritious options, families-especially low-income and Black and Latino households-face even greater risk.

Medication alone to manage hypertension costs $29 billion annually in New York, with $3.4 billion paid directly by individuals. If trends continue, the total cost of chronic disease will reach $2.2 trillion by 2030.

"These two bills were about protecting kids from exploitation and arming parents with basic facts about what they're feeding their families," Nara continued. "The Assembly had an opportunity to stand up to Big Food and say enough is enough. Instead, they walked away. We urge lawmakers to return next session ready to put children's health above corporate profit."

ABOUT THE PMPA:

The Predatory Marketing Prevention Act aka PMPA (S397/A2584): Strengthens existing consumer protections by explicitly defining and restricting misleading targeted marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages to children and adolescents. Building on New York's existing false advertising laws, the legislation ensures that youth are not unfairly manipulated into consuming food products that negatively impact long-term health.

Why Food Marketing Needs Reform:

Influence on Consumer Behavior: Through marketing, the food industry exerts a heavy influence on how and where people make their food-purchasing decisions. For young people, fast-food advertising and processed food marketing may be particularly exploitative, steering their food preferences through early exposure and swaying their parents and caregivers' food purchases.

Bloated Budgets for Predatory Marketing: According to the Federal Trade Commission, food companies spent nearly $2 billion marketing to youth in 2009 (the last year for which data are available). In 2019, fast-food restaurants spent $5 billion in total advertising, an increase of over $400 million (9%) vs. 2012. Notably, communities of color are disproportionately targeted; Black children see 75% more fast food ads than their white peers.

Chronic Disease Risk: According to a 2024 report by Healthy Eating Research, digital food marketing disproportionately affects children, leading to increased consumption of nutrient-poor, calorie-dense foods and beverages linked to preventable health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.

ABOUT THE SODIUM WARNING BLL

The Sodium Warning Bill (S428/A5207): Mirrors existing legislation, including calorie counts and sodium warnings already in effect in chain restaurants around New York City. The bill requires chain restaurants to display warning icons on menu items containing more than the daily recommended sodium limit of 2,300 milligrams. By providing clear, accessible information to diners, the legislation aims to reduce sodium intake across the population, help address rates of chronic disease, and improve public health outcomes.

Why Sodium Reduction Matters:

Hypertension Epidemic: Over 4.5 million adults in New York report having hypertension, with 79% of those individuals relying on medication to manage the condition?.

Excess Sodium in Diets: New York City's fast food restaurants are already concentrated in Black and Latino communities. Despite the serious health risks, many of these chains fail to provide clear nutritional information about their menu items which, on average, have more sodium per calorie compared to foods purchased in stores- making dining out a significant contributor to excessive sodium intake??.

Chronic Disease Burden: Excessive sodium consumption increases the risk of hypertension, heart disease, and stroke, which are among the leading causes of death and disability in New York.