NEW YORK CITY, New York: U.S. health regulators are set to examine the safety classification of dozens of processed food ingredients, after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the Food and Drug Administration would act on a petition seeking their review.

In remarks aired oon CBS' "60 Minutes," Kennedy said the FDA would consider a request from former Commissioner David Kessler to revoke the "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS) status of corn syrup and other sweeteners and starches unless companies can prove they are safe and not contributing to obesity and other health problems.

"We will act on David Kessler's petition," Kennedy said. "And the questions that he's asking are questions that FDA should've been asking a long, long time ago."

Kessler submitted the petition last August, arguing that the GRAS designation, created by Congress in 1958, allows companies to certify ingredient safety without full government review. Kennedy and Kessler contend that the system has enabled widespread use of additives without adequate oversight.

Kennedy said he intends to close what he described as a loophole in the GRAS process, pending White House approval.

"There is no way for any American to know if a product is safe if it is ultraprocessed," Kennedy said on "60 Minutes."

The Consumer Brands Association, which represents major food manufacturers, said companies already comply with the FDA's "science and risk-based evaluation of ingredients in the food supply."

"The GRAS process plays an important role in enabling companies to innovate to meet consumer demand ... We stand ready to work with HHS and FDA as they look to revise GRAS to continue to ensure the analysis of safe ingredients and increase consumer transparency," the group said in a statement.

Kessler, who led the FDA from 1990 to 1997, previously sought to regulate tobacco under the agency — an effort that ultimately failed but heightened scrutiny of the tobacco industry. He said a similar shift in public perception is needed for processed foods.

"We changed how this country views tobacco," Kessler said. "We need to change how this country views these ultraprocessed foods."

Kennedy has made reducing the consumption of processed foods and artificial dyes a central theme of his tenure. The Trump administration issued new dietary guidelines last month, encouraging Americans to consume more protein, less sugar, and fewer highly processed foods.

Still, Kennedy stopped short of calling for new regulations. "I'm not saying that we're going to regulate ultraprocessed food," he said. "Our job is to make sure that everybody understands what they're getting, to have an informed public."