15/12/2025
San Francisco just fired a shot heard across the food industry.
The city filed a landmark lawsuit against some of the biggest ultra-processed food companies, comparing their tactics to Big To***co, alleging deception, addiction-style product design, and marketing that helped drive a chronic disease and health care cost crisis.
Ultra-processed foods are formulated for hyper-palatability and overconsumption, then wrapped in “health halo” messaging that makes them look harmless, or even beneficial.
And the costs don’t land on the balance sheets of the companies selling them. They land on families, hospitals, and cities.
The industry response is always the same, “there’s no clear definition,” “we follow FDA standards,” “we’re offering better options.” Fine.
But here’s the real question, if the marketing is honest and the products are just normal food, why does it take cartoon mascots, kid-targeted campaigns, and constant spin to keep people hooked?
San Francisco is forcing accountability into the open.
And it’s long overdue.
