The FDA has announced plans to review the effects of caffeine added consumer goods on teens and adolescents. Products that include added caffeine, such as Wrigley's newly released Alert Gum, is currently classified by the FDA as "generally recognized as safe" or GRAS, but could soon change.
Specifically the FDA says that they will examine the new forms of caffeine delivery being employed by companies like Wrigley. Their Alert gum for example promises as much caffeine as half a cup of coffee in each piece, tauting each pack as "four cups of coffee in your pocket."
"Could caffeinated macaroni and cheese or breakfast cereal be next?" said Michael Jacobson, director of the non-profit Center for Science in the Public Interest. "One serving of any of these foods isn't likely to harm anyone. The concern is that it will be increasingly easy to consume caffeine throughout the day, sometimes unwittingly, as companies add caffeine to candies, nuts, snacks and other foods. "
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.