Building a Better World, Together

Last spring, a CR investigation raised alarms about Lunchables and other popular prepackaged meal kits, versions of which were being offered as part of the National School Lunch Program. Many were found to contain potentially concerning levels of heavy metals and phthalate chemicals, which have been linked to a long list of health concerns, as well as sodium, which can raise blood pressure even in young people.

In short, CR’s experts warned, nobody should eat these products regularly, and “they definitely shouldn’t be considered a healthy school lunch.” In late summer, we also delivered nearly 50,000 consumer signatures asking the Department of Agriculture to remove Lunchables from the lunch program.

In November, Lunchables manufacturer Kraft Heinz pulled the products from the program. It was a major victory for CR and our partner nonprofit More Perfect Union—and, more important, for the kids eating those school lunches.

Now CR is broadening these efforts, calling on companies and regulators to adopt better nutrition and safety standards for school lunches. We co-sponsored a California law that will ban artificial food dyes—which have been linked to hyperactivity and neurobehavioral problems in children—from food sold in public schools by the end of 2027. And we’re petitioning the companies that provide most of our country’s school lunches—Aramark, Chartwells, and Sodexo—to remove the dyes from their school offerings. You can support this ongoing effort by signing our petition.