Food & Climate
Because of their previous business in cigarette production, some of the largest food companies have adopted methods that drive children’s addiction to ultra-processed food, which recently led to the prosecution of an American teenager. 11 of those at the top of the list, according reports seen by “Food & Climate” platform.
18-year-old Bryce Martinez from Pennsylvania, who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease at 16 after consuming ultra-processed foods throughout his childhood, is taking on eleven food manufacturers for allegedly engineering the foods to be addictive, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Martinez filed this first-of-a-kind case alleges that by marketing these foods to kids, they have contributed to them developing chronic conditions.
The 148-page document submitted to the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia County notes that Martinez was diagnosed with fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes when he was 16, after consuming “harmful levels” of UPFs from these companies. These conditions “did not exist in children” prior to the mainstreaming of these products, the lawsuit claims.
These companies include: Coca-Cola, Nestlé, Kraft Heinz, Mondelēz International, Mars, Kellanova, PepsiCo, Conagra, WK Kellogg Co, Post Holdings, and General Mills.
From cigarette to ultra-processed food
The ultra-processed food, the lawyers claim, have caused chronic illnesses that will worsen and that Martinez will suffer for the rest of his life. “Although such diseases were unheard of in children 40 years ago, they are now common, and treating them constitutes a large fraction of pediatric medical practice,” the complaint reads.
It details the calculated strategies that the food companies took to target children with UPFs, from internal memos and strategic meetings to extensive research that allegedly leveraged our biology and neurology to create addictive substances.
These are tactics straight out of the Big Tobacco playbook, with companies like Phillip Morris and RJ Reynolds taking over the food system from the 1980s with acquisitions of firms that are now Kraft Heinz and Mondelēz.
“During this time, they used their cigarette playbook to fill our food environment with addictive substances that are aggressively marketed to children and minorities,” the lawsuit states. “UPF formulation strategies were guided by the same tobacco company scientists and the same kind of brain research on sensory perceptions, physiological psychology, and chemical senses that were used to increase the addictiveness of cigarettes.”
It continued: “In doing so, Big Tobacco companies intentionally designed UPF to hack the physiological structures of our brains. These formulation strategies were quickly adopted throughout the UPF industry, with the goal of driving consumption, and defendants’ profits, at all costs, according to “Green Queen”.
In 2021, Philip Morris had to pay $3 billion in damages to a California man with lung cancer.
What is an ultra-processed food?
“What is an ultra-processed food?” Dr. Marc Siegel explained on “America Reports”. “It includes emulsifiers, preservatives, colorings, things that actually cause people to eat more of it – even if it’s empty calories, high fructose corn sirup, salt and sugar, things that are very bad for you”, according to “ABC News”.
The medical expert explained that the foods are prevalent on supermarket shelves across the country.
“We’ve got to figure out a way to get healthy foods out there instead,” he told Fox News. “I know they’re more expensive, but maybe that’s where supplement and money should come from to get the school lunches fixed, to get them where you have no alternative. People are going to eat. Kids are going to eat at school, but they might find a French fry tastier so they rush there, or something ultra colored. When you’re very young, you know, trying to get Red Dye Three out of there because it looks so bright and cherry that young children are drawn to it. Very, very unhealthy!”
Evidence suggests these foods also lead to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and weight gain; the doctor explained.
“It’s a long haul to do this, but we got to start very young with children,” he said. “(The) figure of over 40% of adults being obese, (and now) over 20% of children obese and that’s starting down a treadmill.”