Are Baby Food Brands Hiding Toxic Metals? | CD Law Report

In January 2025, California’s AB 899 law went into effect, requiring baby food brands to publish test results for lead, arsenic, mercury, and cadmium. But when CD Law conducted an independent review, we found something disturbing: some brands are technically complying—but obscuring the truth with delays, vague reports, and complex lookup processes.

What is California’s AB 899?

About the Law (AB 899 Overview):

• Effective Date:

  • Testing: January 1, 2024

  • Consumer Disclosure: January 1, 2025

• Mandates:

  • Monthly testing of baby food batches by certified ISO/IEC labs

  • Public posting of test results on brand websites for product shelf life + 1 month

  • Required QR codes on packaging linking to test data

  • Disclosure must include name and level of each toxic element tested

  • Applies to baby food sold, made, or offered for sale in California (excluding infant formula)

📌 Key Toxic Elements Covered:

• Lead

• Arsenic

• Cadmium

• Mercury

AB-899 Food safety: baby food.(2023-2024)

CD Law’s Baby Food Brand Review – April 2025

Scope of Review:

• 1,130 test results reviewed across five brands

• Analyzed transparency, accuracy, and ease of access

• Results from April 1–30, 2025

🟥 Key Finding:
Even with AB 899 in place, brands like Beech-Nut, Happy Family, and Gerber use confusing methods or vague symbols that limit consumer understanding.

🟩 Plum Organics, by contrast, provides easy access to clear test results for over 900 products.

Brand-by-Brand Transparency Breakdown

The Legal Gaps & Industry Loopholes

Loopholes in Implementation:

• Brands use < (less than) symbols (e.g. <5 ppb) instead of exact values

• Results posted in parts per billion (ppb) — not micrograms per serving, which is what California’s warning law uses

• No indication of whether results apply to one serving or multiple servings

• QR codes often lead to hard-to-navigate pages or require packaging in hand

Quote from Vineet Dubey:
“AB 899 was meant to empower parents. But right now, it’s only empowering red tape.”

Recommendations for Lawmakers & Parents

 What Needs to Change:

1. Enforce real accessibility — test results must be readable and available without codes or package info

2. Require reporting in micrograms per serving

3. Ban vague symbols like < — post exact data

4. Standardize layouts and definitions across brands

For Parents:

• Always check for QR codes and test results before purchase

• Avoid brands with vague reporting or access hurdles

• Follow CD Law’s breakdown and lookup links

How to Find the Data Yourself

Quick access guide to each brand’s test results page: