California Leading the Way as the First US State to Restrict Ultra-Processed Foods in School Meals

California has made history by enacting the “Real Food, Healthy Kids Act” the first law in the U.S. to define and ultimately ban certain "ultraprocessed foods of concern" (UPFs) from public school meals. Signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, the legislation is set to transform the nutritional quality of over a billion meals served annually to California schoolchildren.

The law is a direct response to a growing public health crisis, as American children currently derive nearly two-thirds of their calories from ultraprocessed foods, which have been linked to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, according to a recent CDC report.

The groundbreaking mandate established by the Act is set to unfold over the next decade, beginning with an unprecedented statutory definition of ultraprocessed food (UPF). Under the new law, a food is broadly classified as a UPF if it is high in saturated fat, added sugar, or sodium, and contains one or more industrial ingredients such as nonnutritive sweeteners, emulsifiers, thickening agents, flavor enhancers, or artificial dyes. The immediate next step falls to the State Department of Public Health, which is required to adopt clear regulations by mid-2028 to formally identify the most problematic items as "ultraprocessed foods of concern" and "restricted school foods."

From there, a structured phase-out will commence. Schools must begin eliminating the restricted foods by July 2029. The supply chain will feel the effect in July 2032, when food vendors are prohibited from supplying these "foods of concern" to schools. Finally, the total ban takes effect in July 2035, when school districts will be barred from offering any meal that includes the restricted items for breakfast or lunch.

Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, the bill's author, emphasized that the goal is a targeted removal of the most harmful products, not an outright ban on all processed food. He stressed the policy aims to eliminate UPFs with additives and high levels of fat, sugar, or salt that are scientifically linked to adverse health outcomes like cancer, diabetes, or food addiction.

California has long led the way on school meals. In 2022, it became the first state in the country to make school meals free for all students, regardless of income. Many districts have implemented farm-to-school programs to bring local foods into school meals. And last year it became the first state in the nation to ban six synthetic food dyes from school meals.