Ultraprocessed foods account for roughly 70% of the American diet by some estimates, but research has linked certain ultraprocessed foods and their ingredients to obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, multiple types of cancer, cognitive decline, and children’s neurodevelopmental disorders.

Humans have been making processed foods for millennia, such as fermenting milk to make cheese or yogurt and curing meats, to make them last longer. But the term “ultraprocessed” connotes using ingredients not typically found in home kitchens or highly industrial processes to create a concoction that is not traditionally eaten by humans.

Common examples of ultraprocessed ingredients include diglycerides, xanthan gum, calcium propionate, cellulose powder, and potassium sorbate, all of which are found in a box of Lunchables, made by Kraft Heinz.

“It makes me sick that generations of kids and parents are being deceived and buying food that’s not food,” Chiu told the New York Times in his announcement of the lawsuit plans.

Chiu’s push against ultraprocessed foods mirrors that of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a fellow Californian who has made cleaning up the food supply a central part of his Make America Healthy Again agenda.

San Francisco has had historic success in other lawsuits related to public health, previously winning $539 million from tobacco companies and $21 million from lead paint manufacturers. The California city also secured $350 million in settlements and trial winnings from various healthcare entities involved in the opioid epidemic.

But, earlier this year, a federal judge in Philadelphia dismissed a similar case filed against ultraprocessed food makers by a 16-year-old diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The judge ruled that the plaintiff’s claim lacked specificity about the products he consumed.

The lawsuit accuses companies of “unfair and deceptive acts” in how they market and sell their foods and contends that companies sell their products while knowing that their food is making people sick.

Chiu’s suit, to be filed in San Francisco Superior Court, seeks unspecified damages for the costs local governments bear for treating residents whose health has been harmed.

Other companies included in the lawsuit are the cereal maker Post Holdings, Oreo maker Mondelez International, Betty Crocker cake mix maker ConAgra Brands, General Mills, Nestle USA, Kellogg, and Mars Inc.

The Consumer Brands Association trade group, representing many of the manufacturers named in the suit, responded with a statement saying that many manufacturers are working to reformulate their products to increase protein and fiber while decreasing sugar content. 

Association spokeswoman Joceyln Kelly told the New York Times that, because there is no standard definition of what constitutes “ultraprocessed,” it is unfair to lump all products together in a menacing-sounding category. 

“Attempting to classify foods as unhealthy simply because they are processed, or demonizing food by ignoring its full nutrient content, misleads consumers and exacerbates health disparities,” Kelly said.

Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary announced earlier this year that his agency would be working toward a more uniform definition of ultraprocessed foods, which will likely be heavily featured in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans document to be published by HHS before the end of the year.

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But public health experts in recent months have expressed concerns that condemning ultraprocessed foods will create greater barriers to access to food for lower-income Americans and increase domestic labor, which disproportionately falls on women.

The Consumer Brands Association launched a new campaign earlier this week, highlighting that premade foods can be both healthy and convenient for families.