Labels tell you the ingredients. Chaga tells you what the labels don't.
The gap between what's allowed in American food and what's allowed everywhere else is wider than most people realize. Chaga exists to make that gap visible — in the store, before you buy.
The regulatory gap is real
The European Union has banned or restricted over 1,300 ingredients that are perfectly legal in American products. Not obscure chemicals — ingredients in products you buy every week. In your cereal. In your children's snacks. In your sports drinks.
The FDA operates on a "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) framework that hasn't been meaningfully updated in decades. Manufacturers can self-certify ingredients as safe without independent review. Europe requires proof of safety before approval. America requires proof of harm after the fact.
Ingredients you should know about
- Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 — Synthetic dyes requiring hyperactivity warning labels in the EU. GRAS in the US. FDA voluntary phase-out announced 2025. Banned in West Virginia.
- Titanium Dioxide (E171) — Banned as a food additive in the EU since 2022. Approved by the FDA. Found in candies and baked goods.
- Potassium Bromate — Banned in the EU, UK, and Canada as a possible carcinogen. Approved by the FDA. Found in commercial breads.
- Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO) — Banned in the EU. FDA revoked authorization in 2024, but products containing it may persist on shelves.
- BHA — Restricted in the EU as a possible carcinogen. GRAS in the US. Found in breakfast cereals and chips.
- TBHQ — Restricted in the EU. GRAS in the US. Found in fast food and packaged snacks.
The pet problem nobody talks about
70% of American households have a pet. Many human foods contain ingredients that are toxic to dogs and cats — and the label won't tell you.
Xylitol is in sugar-free peanut butter, gum, and protein bars. It causes rapid insulin release, liver failure, and death in dogs. A single stick of gum can kill a small dog. There is no warning on the label.
Chaga tracks 30 pet-toxic ingredients with severity ratings from LOW to CRITICAL. When you scan a product, Chaga shows you which ingredients are toxic to your pets — personalized to your dog, your cat, or both. Always confirm with your veterinarian.
The severity matters. Chaga doesn't treat all pet toxins equally. Xylitol — found increasingly in peanut butter, protein bars, and sugar-free products — carries a CRITICAL rating because even trace amounts cause liver failure in dogs within hours. Garlic powder in chicken broth carries a CAUTION rating because while toxic in significant amounts, trace levels in commercial food are lower risk. This nuance is what separates useful information from noise.
This is not fear-mongering. These are facts documented in EU regulatory databases, FDA enforcement actions, and peer-reviewed studies. Every flag in Chaga links to its source. Verify everything we show you.
Science-backed, not opinion-backed
Every flagged ingredient in Chaga links to its scientific source — PubMed studies, EU regulatory documents, FDA databases. We don't tell you what to think. We show you what the research says and let you decide.
Chaga uses a deterministic scoring formula, not machine learning. Nutrition score from Nutri-Score methodology. Ingredient risk from our curated database of 163+ ingredients cross-referenced against EU, FDA, and state-level regulatory data. Every score can be explained. Every flag can be verified.
Our ingredient database draws from multiple authoritative sources: Open Food Facts (the world's largest open food database), USDA FoodData Central (the US government's official branded food database with 1.96 million products), and our own curated safety database built from EFSA assessments, FDA enforcement records, peer-reviewed research, and veterinary science. When sources conflict, we default to the most conservative credible assessment.
Independent by design
Chaga takes $0 from advertising and $0 from food brands or manufacturers. Revenue comes from subscriptions and affiliate commissions on healthier alternatives — never from the companies whose products we evaluate.
Our scores are never influenced by who makes the product. Independence is not a marketing claim. It's the business model.
Built for America
Yuka was built in France for European regulations. Chaga was built in America for American products, American regulations, and American families.
We track FDA enforcement actions in real time — phase-outs, authorization revocations, voluntary industry commitments. We track state-level bans as they expand. 75 bills in 37 states in 2025 alone. West Virginia banned Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 in March 2025. More states are following.
The FDA is finally starting to act. Chaga shows you where they are — and where they haven't gotten to yet.