FDA to reassess safety of ‘yoga mat’ chemical in food

Food Dive reported the development on 2026-05-21. The agency will review ADA and chewing gum preservative BHT as it backs away from a plan to prioritize ingredient safety evaluations based on consumer concern.

The report places the news in a wider commercial context. The FDA said it would reassess the safety of food chemicals butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and azodicarbonamide (ADA) as the agency finalizes a plan to review ingredients based on their risk to public health. The agency issued two requests for information regarding the use and safety of BHT and ADA. BHT is used as a preservative in frozen meals, breakfast cereals, chewing gum and meat products.

For the food sector, the practical implications extend beyond the immediate announcement. The announcement is the latest move by the FDA to reassess approval of ingredients as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claims a lack of transparency in the current approval process. The agency has also launched reassessments of meat preservative BHA and the rarely used Orange B food dye. "Americans want the FDA to take a fresh look at some of.

Attention now turns to how companies, customers and regulators respond. Both BHT and ADA are heavily regulated in Europe over concerns that the chemicals are possible carcinogens. Europe banned ADA in 2005 while BHT can only be used in certain food categories. The FDA is asking the food industry for information on use of both additives. The American Bakers Association, which represents U.S.