The Truth About Synthetic Food Ingredients Being Marketed as “Healthy”

Eat Ze Chemicals and Be Happy?

Today, I want to talk about a scary trend I've been watching: companies are selling chemicals and marketing them to you as if they were real food.

You might have heard the phrase “Eat Ze Bugs.” While eating crickets sounds gross, there is an even bigger problem happening right now. We are being told to “Eat Ze Chemicals and Be Happy.”

Synthetic food ingredients are lab-created or highly processed compounds added to food for preservation, texture, or shelf life – but they are not whole, natural foods.

If you prefer, you can watch or listen to this article.

Why Some Produce Has a Synthetic Coating

Have you noticed that some fruits and vegetables stay "fresh" for an unnaturally long time?

Some are now covered in a synthetic coating. One company makes a product that is a preservative coating on your food.

I have been researching this for a long time, and here is what you should know:

• It’s made from processed oils: It uses monoglycerides. These are made from seed oils that are heavily processed with heat, heavy metals, and chemicals.

• You can’t wash it off: It is designed to be water-resistant. In the past, the company’s own customer service said it couldn't be scrubbed off.

• It’s filed as a pesticide: Instead of being tested as a food ingredient, it was filed with the EPA as a "fungicide." That means the government views it as a chemical to kill fungus, not a snack. Though its FDA filing calls it “edible packaging.”

I’m currently in a legal battle with this company because I used my free speech to warn you about it. They want to make an example out of me to keep everyone else quiet and afraid to speak up about what is in or on our food.

If this coating is on all our produce, people who eat a healthy, plant-based diet who juice, or drink green smoothies, could be eating 20 times more of this chemicalized coating than what even the company’s own filing says is "safe."

There may be monoglycerides in candy and other ultraprocessed foods. But we eat those only by choice.

I don’t want that product coating the healthiest fruits and vegetables I choose for a healthy, happy, disease-minimized life – not to satisfy a sweet tooth or buy the cheapest foods available.

Are Ketone Drinks Safe or Synthetic?

Another example of "non-food" is the rise of ketone shots. You might see big podcasters selling these plastic jugs of liquid, claiming they give you amazing energy.

I decided to do a "deep dive" using AI to find out what is actually in these drinks. At first, the AI just gave me the "marketing script."

But when I pushed for the real chemistry, here is what I found:

• They aren't food: They are lab-made molecules (specifically 1,3-butanediol).

• They have roots in the oil industry: Originally, these were made from petrochemicals (stuff made from oil and gas). Now, they are often made by fermenting bacteria like E. coli or engineered yeast.

• There are no long-term studies: We have no idea what happens to your body if you drink these "chemical shots" every day, or often. Toxins build up in the body over time, and no one is tracking the damage.

What Is the GRAS Loophole in the FDA?

How do these chemicals get into our food without the government stopping them? It’s a loophole called GRAS.

Basically, a company can hire its own scientists to say a chemical is safe. The FDA then just files the paperwork without doing its own independent testing. This is how thousands of synthetic ingredients have ended up in everything from cereal to baby formula.

Even baby formula – which should be the purest food on earth – is often filled with corn syrup, sugar, and these same monoglyceride seed-oil derived emulsifier products, just to make the texture "smooth." It’s no wonder our children are getting sicker.

Why Your Voice Matters Right Now

In 2026, there is a big push in the government to pass laws (like certain parts of the "Farm Bill") that would ban people from speaking out against pesticide companies. They want to make it illegal for consumers like us to complain about these coatings on our food!

We have to stand up for our right to know what is in our food. We deserve real plants, not "chemicalized" versions of them.

I worked with some other consumers and activists to kill the ban on free speech against Big Ag chemicals, recently, successfully in Florida. But similar bills are in front of various states, and in front of the U.S. Congress.

What You Can Do Today

• Talk to Your Grocer: Ask them if their produce is coated with any films or coatings, or, as this company calls their product in their FDA filing, “edible packaging.” If they say yes, let them know you want to buy only "naked" produce, and follow up to make sure you know what you’re eating. Currently, that company is attempting to sell to the growers and shippers, instead of the wholesalers and retailers, where consumers saw it, researched it, and revolted.

• Avoid the "Hype" Supplements: If a product comes in a plastic jug and was made in a lab using bacteria and chemicals, it’s not food. Stick to what nature provided.

• Support Free Speech: There’s a law in front of Congress, HR 4737, which would require companies to label any synthetic coatings on produce so you can choose for yourself. You can write to your U.S. House Rep and Senator asking them to support the required labeling of all produce.

Currently, the manufacturer of the food coating has stated that they are trying to sell their product to growers and shippers, since the consumer has rejected it being sold to wholesalers and retailers. Either way, I personally don’t want it on my food.

I’m speaking up about “fungicide” films on our food, and chemicals in our food, while I still can, and I hope you do, too. Especially to people selling you that food.

 

Read Next: Why I Won’t Take 99% of Supplements Anymore