“The Food and Drug Administration has released a long-awaited final rule updating its definition of “healthy” foods, emphasizing fresh produce, whole grains and pulses with limits on added sugar and sodium. The goal of the rule, in conjunction with other initiatives like front-of-package nutrition labeling, is to make it easier for consumers to find foods that align with healthy diets, based on the latest dietary guidance.
Under the new guidance, a food labeled as “healthy” must include certain amounts of a food from at least one of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans food groups or subgroups. This includes fruits, vegetables, protein foods, dairy and grains. These foods must also meet limits on saturated fat, sodium and added sugars.
The Sugar Association has accepted previous DGA recommendations limiting added sugars to 10% of total calories, but criticized the “healthy” definition for suggesting limits beyond this. In a statement, the group argued the new definition “arbitrarily excludes many foods containing added sugars that are key providers of essential nutrients, such as fruit yogurt.
The new definition would instead incentivize additives like low-and no-calorie sweeteners in food, the group said.
“At some point, the government needs to acknowledge that we don’t have a good grasp on how pervasive these low- and no-calorie sweeteners have become in our food supply, unbeknown to most Americans,” said Courtney Gaine, CEO and president of Sugar Association, in a statement. “It is past time we bring some transparency to these additives like we have for added sugars.”
Read the full article here: https://www.agri-pulse.com/articles/22091-fda-finalizes-healthy-food-definition
March 22, 2026
"The Feeding the Economy report affirms the vital role food and agriculture play in our nation’s economic resilience and food security. Commercial bakers have long been proud partners to American agriculture, sourcing 85 percent of their core ingredients from domestic farmers....Sponsoring organizations from the food and agriculture industries, who helped make the 2026 study possible, provided commentary on this year’s findings. The full list of sponsoring organizations includes: ...The Sugar Association"
March 10, 2026
"Courtney Gaine, president and CEO of the Sugar Association, a scientific body that supports the U.S. sugar industry, told the USDA Outlook Forum that the school meal standards taking effect next year might prohibit added sugars in kindergarten meals and could significantly restrict them in other grades. That change alone would cut sugar demand by over 130,000 short tons. The industry faces additional pressure from rising GLP-1 weight-loss drug usage, which jumped from 12% in May 2024 to 18% in November 2025, though Gaine cautioned it remains "premature to assess the impact."
March 3, 2026
"Gaine added, "There is no data to support all this." She said the focus on added sugar is often politically motivated, but food groups have not pushed back on the MAHA pressure. There is a lot of fear of retaliation, and for good reason they have not wanted to push back publicly," Gaine said. "I think it’s going to demand a coordinated, really coordinated, pushing back. Any effort up (until) now has been to go along to get along, and I don’t know if that’s going to work."
© 2026 The Sugar Association, Inc. All rights reserved.
Get Social with #MoreToSugar