Families are feeling the pressure at the checkout line, the gas pump, and when the bills come due. Keeping up with the cost of living is now the most pressing challenge for households across the country, and people are looking for solutions that bring some relief.
The latest data from the consumer price index show costs rising 4.2% over the past year. Inflation spares no one: Working families, retirees on fixed incomes, and small-business owners alike must absorb costs and tighten budgets to make it through the week. We cannot afford policies that make costs worse. As families like mine navigate the aisles of their corner grocery store or local supermarkets, we are facing an invisible threat to our family budgets: a confusing and expensive web of conflicting state regulations on our food that is driving costs up.
Currently, states across the country are passing well-intentioned, yet burdensome ingredient regulations. If left unaddressed, studies show this state-by-state patchwork of laws will trigger a 12% increase in the cost of groceries for the average household. Thankfully, there’s a solution brewing in Congress to solve this unnecessary burden on the public.
THE HORMUZ BLOCKADE IS CAUSING DEMONSTRABLE HARM TO FOOD AFFORDABILITY
Recently, Congress has been considering a proposal from Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL) to deliver on transparency in our food system and keep costs low. As a mother like me, Cammack understands firsthand what it means to worry about what’s in the food we put on the table for our children. The proposal, known as the FDA Review and Evaluation for Safe, Healthy, and Affordable Foods Act of 2026, is a serious step toward national uniformity on ingredient transparency and safety.
By affirming the Food and Drug Administration as the gold standard authority over food and beverage ingredients, this legislation would provide a federal framework that ensures consistency and transparency for all people, regardless of ZIP code.
The FRESH and Affordable Foods Act goes beyond maintaining our interstate commerce and keeping food prices affordable for the public. The legislation includes several key reforms that organizations like the National Taxpayers Union and Americans for Tax Reform have supported. A key element is modernizing the “generally recognized as safe” framework. Currently, notifying the government about new food ingredients is mostly voluntary. These changes would enhance consumer transparency by providing a public registry of ingredients and accompanying safety data for the FDA to review while ensuring that science remains the foundation of food safety.
The legislation also establishes a program for the FDA to reassess the safety of substances already in the food supply chain. The post-market reassessment process will be driven by risk-based prioritization and robust scientific data. This ensures the ingredients in your pantry remain safe over time while providing the companies that make our food with a predictable and transparent review process. This, coupled with GRAS reform, will be the most expansive yet practical update to food safety we have seen from Congress to date, a major win for mothers looking for more transparency from the brands they shop for at the grocery store.
Cammack’s proposal also establishes increased testing and monitoring for baby food and infant formula. Parents will have peace of mind with rigorous testing and recordkeeping requirements, while avoiding price hikes caused by a patchwork of conflicting state laws. The measure will also help maintain a strong free market that allows brands to bring a wide range of options to consumers, ensuring competition that will give parents access to more choices for their families.
The FRESH and Affordable Foods Act proves that we can do both: produce wins for MAHA and deliver on President Donald Trump‘s commitment to keeping costs low for people. In fact, the Trump administration has already expressed openness to this approach. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. indicated that national uniformity is a viable path to increasing transparency while simultaneously lowering costs for the public.
A national standard is what the public demands. Recent polling indicates 87% of voters believe the regulation of food ingredients and labeling should happen at the national level instead of a series of state-by-state regulations. Cost of living remains the No. 1 concern for voters, and action by Congress will align the government with the priorities of the public.
Congressional leadership, including Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie (R-KY), deserves credit for holding a hearing on Cammack’s proposal and pushing to move it forward. These serious deliberations from the Energy and Commerce Committee on the FRESH and Affordable Foods Act show a genuine interest in real reforms that protect people’s health and pocketbooks.
AFFORDABILITY: THE ‘PAIN’ INDEX
This draft legislation is a positive first step toward a more transparent and affordable food supply. By creating a uniform national standard for ingredient transparency and modernizing ingredient reviews, these transformational reforms will occur while protecting grocery carts and pocketbooks of every family. Leaders in Congress should move quickly to bring this legislation to a markup and vote before the full House.
Keeping our food safe and our family budgets intact requires a single, strong, and national standard. The FRESH and Affordable Foods Act of 2026 provides exactly that.
Patrice Onwuka is an AFIT senior adviser.