Senate Committee Advances Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act
Keith Fentonmiller, Senior Counsel, BBB National Programs
Food advertising and childhood obesity are once again the subject of Congressional scrutiny.
On July 22, the bipartisan Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 12-10 to advance S. 5026, the Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act of 2026 (CDRA), one step closer to the Senate floor.
The CDRA would profoundly change food and beverage marketing by requiring warnings on the packaging and advertising of many foods and beverages and making “child-directed” advertising of these foods a violation of federal law.
Here’s a breakdown of the bill’s most significant provisions:
Among other provisions, the CDRA would also expand the FTC’s rulemaking authority over children’s advertising — restoring the Commission’s power to issue broader rules in this area. The CDRA’s warning requirements and advertising restrictions would become effective one year after the date of the bill’s enactment.
The CDRA reflects legislators’ increasing concern about the role of food and beverage advertising as a contributing factor to childhood obesity and related diseases like diabetes. Companies can address this concern—and the perceived need for government regulation of food marketing—by joining BBB National Programs’ Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI).
For two decades, leading food, beverage, and restaurant companies have worked to improve child-directed food advertising through their voluntary participation in CFBAI. Through the advertising commitments made by CFBAI participants—including the commitment not to advertise any foods or beverages to children that don’t meet nutrition standards—the children’s food advertising landscape has changed.
By joining CFBAI, companies can increase CFBAI’s positive impact on child-directed food advertising and proactively address lawmakers’ concerns.
Food advertising and childhood obesity are once again the subject of Congressional scrutiny.
On July 22, the bipartisan Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 12-10 to advance S. 5026, the Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act of 2026 (CDRA), one step closer to the Senate floor.
The CDRA would profoundly change food and beverage marketing by requiring warnings on the packaging and advertising of many foods and beverages and making “child-directed” advertising of these foods a violation of federal law.
Here’s a breakdown of the bill’s most significant provisions:
Warnings on Product Packaging
The CDRA amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to impose a new warning label regime for foods and beverages that meet the definition of “ultra-processed foods” or “sugar-sweetened beverages” or that contain “high-intensity sweeteners” or high levels of “nutrients of concern.”- Ultra-processed foods are defined as foods or beverages containing industrial ingredients, such as emulsifiers, stabilizers, or flavor enhancers. Such foods, with limited exceptions, would be required to have a warning on the front or principal display panel of packaging stating that consuming ultra-processed foods and drinks can cause weight gain, which increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
- Sugar-sweetened beverages are defined as beverages like soda and sports and energy drinks with added caloric sweeteners that contain 25 or more calories per 12 fluid ounces. Such beverages would be required to have a warning on the front or principal display panel of packaging stating that drinking beverages with added sugar can contribute to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and tooth decay, and that the product is not recommended for children.
- High-intensity sweeteners are defined as any synthetic, naturally-occurring, or modified non-nutritive sweetener that is not classified as sugar and is used as an ingredient in manufactured food, such as aspartame, sucralose, or stevia. Foods or beverages with high-intensity sweeteners would be required to have a warning on the front or principal display panel of packaging stating that the product contains a high-intensity sweetener and is not recommended for children.
- Foods containing a nutrient of concern, such as added sugar, saturated fat, sodium, and any other nutrient the Secretary of Health and Human Services designates at a level that increases the risk of disease or a health-related condition, would be required to warn on packaging that the food is “High in [nutrient].”
Ban on Child-Directed “Junk Food” Advertising
The CDRA defines ultra-processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, and foods or beverages with high-intensity sweeteners or high levels of nutrients of concern as, collectively, “junk food.” The CDRA prohibits child-directed advertising of such foods through two separate provisions.- The CDRA amends the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to prohibit marketing or advertising of such foods “in a manner that reasonably appears to be directed at children,” based on the Secretary’s consideration of the “totality of the circumstances” — including whether the ad uses themes or promotional strategies that appeal to children, such as fun or fantasy elements, athlete or celebrity endorsements, cartoon or fictional characters, social media influencers, free gifts, contests, or interactive games or apps.
- The CDRA also amends the FTC Act to prohibit marketing or advertising “junk food” using “child-directed advertising” — defined as advertising that uses themes or promotional strategies that appeal to children (such as fantasy elements, cartoon characters, social media influencers, free gifts, etc.), or, independently, that is placed in media where children under age 13 comprise 30 percent or more of the audience.
Warnings in Product Advertising
Under the amended FTC Act, the mandatory warning labels required under the amended Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act also would apply to advertising and marketing materials for “junk food,” regardless of whether they are child-directed.Among other provisions, the CDRA would also expand the FTC’s rulemaking authority over children’s advertising — restoring the Commission’s power to issue broader rules in this area. The CDRA’s warning requirements and advertising restrictions would become effective one year after the date of the bill’s enactment.
The CDRA reflects legislators’ increasing concern about the role of food and beverage advertising as a contributing factor to childhood obesity and related diseases like diabetes. Companies can address this concern—and the perceived need for government regulation of food marketing—by joining BBB National Programs’ Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI).
For two decades, leading food, beverage, and restaurant companies have worked to improve child-directed food advertising through their voluntary participation in CFBAI. Through the advertising commitments made by CFBAI participants—including the commitment not to advertise any foods or beverages to children that don’t meet nutrition standards—the children’s food advertising landscape has changed.
By joining CFBAI, companies can increase CFBAI’s positive impact on child-directed food advertising and proactively address lawmakers’ concerns.