OPINIONOperations

San Francisco takes on manufacturers of ultra-processed food

Working Lunch: This week's political podcast looks at lawsuits arguing that the food industry is making Americans chronically ill. Is processed food the new smoking?

In this week’s Working Lunch, Joe Kefauver and Franklin Coley of Align Public Strategies take a look at a lawsuit filed by San Francisco city attorney arguing that some of the largest U.S. manufacturers are contributing to chronic disease across the country. Those food producers are borrowing from the Big Tobacco playbook with addition science and marketing techniques, the lawsuit contends.

Are such legal complaints a harbinger of things to come?

In addition, the podcast discusses polling by labor activist group One Fair Wage indicating broad voter support for raising the federal minimum wage to at least $25 per hour, underscoring how affordability and wage concerns are poised to shape the 2026 election cycle.

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