On World Heart Day, CSPI, Lawmakers, Parents, Advocates Urge Gov to Sign Major Food Transparency Package

NEW YORK, NY (09/29/2026) (readMedia)-- Today aka World Heart Day, the Center for the Science in the Public Interest led a rally outside City Hall with the American Heart Association, parents, families, and lawmakers, including State Senator Brian Kavanagh, Council Members Althea Stevens and Lynn Schulman urging Governor Hochul to sign a major food reform package that will strengthen consumer transparency and clean up New York's food supply, amid longstanding food safety gaps and a lax FDA. Council Members Stevens and Schulman will introduce resolutions in the City Council on the food reform package, which call on the Governor to sign the bills into law.

Watch footage of the event here and see attached photos.

Key legislation awaiting Governor Hochul's signature includes:

• Food Safety and Chemical Disclosure Act (S1239F/A1556G Kavanagh/Kelles) which will ban harmful additives Red No. 3, propylparaben, and potassium bromate, plus mandate transparency requirements for chemicals used in foods
• Sodium Warning Bill (S428/A5207 Rivera/Reyes) which will require clear sodium warning icons on chain restaurant menus to ensure transparency

Food giants routinely flout the law to introduce harmful, poorly-tested chemicals into the nation's food supply without adequate FDA oversight, leaving consumers in the dark about the safety of their purchases. More than 70% of American adults are alarmed about chemicals in the food supply, and 5 in 6 want government and businesses to do more on chemical safety and transparency.

The same lack of transparency extends to restaurant menus. Facing uneven access to healthy food, children and communities of color statewide continue to battle aggressive fast food marketing and overexposure to high-sodium menu items linked to chronic diet-related diseases, including hypertension, heart disease, and stroke. Yet, many of these chains fail to provide clear nutritional information, leaving customers unaware that certain meals exceed the recommended daily limits for sodium. Data confirms that more than 4.5 million adults statewide have hypertension, with nearly 80% relying on medication to manage the condition.

"As parents, my husband and I did everything we could to keep our children safe. But because federal regulators failed to act, we lost our only daughter, Sarah, after Panera sold her a dangerously caffeinated drink without adequate warning. The Sodium Warning Bill and the Food Safety and Chemical Disclosure Act will save lives. The Governor must sign these two bills into law and protect future generations," said Jill Katz, mother and food safety advocate.

"What we eat should never be a gamble. Yet as food supply concerns grow nationwide, and parents scramble to figure out what's safe to feed their children, Washington keeps bending to industry instead of answering to the public. Albany has a chance to fill those gaps and make transparency the law of the land with each of these bills. We are calling on Governor Hochul to sign them into law and help build a safer, more equitable food system for all New Yorkers," said Dr. DeAnna Nara, CSPI Campaign Manager.

"As a mother, nurse, and a Bronx lawmaker, I witness the health consequences of our food environment everyday: rising hypertension and chronic diseases are robbing kids of a healthy childhood. Within some of our most vulnerable communities, food giants are getting away with hiding dangerous amounts of sodium in the menus they serve families everyday. But our children, and future generations, deserve the tools to live a healthy life. This World Heart Day, I join my colleagues in the Senate and City Council in urging Governor Hochul to pass the Sodium Warning Bill and put the burden back where it belongs: on the corporations profiting from this harm, not the communities bearing it," said Assemblymember Karines Reyes, R.N., prime sponsor of the Sodium Warning Bill.

"Pediatricians know well that family dietary habits and decisions made on the daily can cumulatively lead to poor health outcomes decades later. Our children and communities live in consumer environments where they do not know what goes into their foods before they eat, and some of these options can include additives that have clear poor health associations. These bills will help protect New Yorkers' health by removing certain dangerous additives from the food supply and helping families make more informed choices that support their health. These are bills that improve transparency, accountability, and trust in food systems. We call on the governor to sign this important public health legislation into law and help communities lead healthier lives," said Dr. Charles E. Moon III, MD FAAP, co-chair of the New York State American Academy of Pediatrics Public Policy & Advocacy Committee.

"1.4 billion adults worldwide have high blood pressure. In the Bronx it's 36%, that's over 1 in 3 people. 15% of Bronx residents have diabetes and 37% of Bronx adults are obese, the highest prevalence rates in NYC. Black, Latino, and Asian New Yorkers have diabetes rates nearly twice the prevalence rate of white New Yorkers. We can't say we are a city and state that centers equity if we aren't doing everything in our power to change those statistics. To change this reality we must commit to policies like the Food Safety and Chemical Disclosure Act and Sodium Warning Bill that promote health equity for all New Yorkers. Pms World Heart Day we are counting on Governor Hochul to protect our families," said Diya Basu-Sen, Executive Director, Sapna NYC.

BACKGROUND

Why Food Safety Regulation and Sodium Reduction Matter:

• Dangers in the Nation's Food Supply: Americans are regularly exposed to food chemicals that have been banned throughout the European Union, Canada, China, and other countries due to known health risks. Additives like Red No. 3, potassium bromate, and propylparaben have been linked to cancer, hormone disruption, and other serious conditions – yet they remain legal and widely used in most U.S. states.
• Excess Sodium in Diets: Restaurant foods, on average, have more sodium per calorie compared to foods purchased in stores, making dining out a significant contributor to excessive sodium intake??.
• 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?.
• Chronic Disease Risk: 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. Amid rising rates of cancer, developmental disorders, and hormone-related illnesses, continued exposure to toxic food additives could further exacerbate health inequities and drive long-term costs to the healthcare system.