Mass. Dunkin' customers respond as RFK Jr. goes after chain - NBC Boston

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is going after Dunkin’ and Starbucks.

Robert F. Kennedy Junior is going after Dunkin' and Starbucks.

The Health and Human Services secretary is specifically concerned with the high amounts of sugar in their drinks. He spoke before a crowd in Texas recently about the Trump administration potentially pulling certain ingredients from the country's food supply if they’re not proven safe.

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"Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks, show us the safety data that show that it's OK for a teenage girl to drink an iced coffee with 115 grams of sugar in it," Kennedy said.

Massachusetts is the birthplace of Dunkin' and some people are being protective of any potential digs at the chain. Others are saying Kennedy's comment points to a real health concern.

Jamie Canney, a regular Dunkin' customer, treated herself to an extra sugary butter pecan coffee Wednesday, but said that's not her typical order.

"Dunkin' is like the heart of Boston," she said. "I feel like that might cause an uproar."

Gov. Maura Healey posted a message on social media with a picture of a Dunkin' beverage, with a star above it, saying "COME AND TAKE IT."

Sandra Zhang, a registered dietician at Tufts Medical Center, says it is important for all chains to be transparent due to health risks for all ages.

"If someone is consuming a high amount of added sugar, repeatedly, with high frequency -- again, for metabolic health, and healthy weight status, and in general, it would be much harder for this person to have a balanced diet," Zhang said.

"I think it would be a good idea to maybe, for in general, for people to cut back, and for that information to be provided," said George Apazidis, a regular Dunkin' customer.

Outside Starbucks with her 9-year-old daughter, Jessica Voskanian said, "I understand, show the data, but I think parents have the right to make the decisions on what their kids can and can't have."

She allowed her daughter, Kaia, to order a strawberry acai lemonade.

"I like some sugary drinks, not all of them," Kaia said. "I don't like to have a lot of sugar at once."

NBC10 Boston reached out to Dunkin' and Starbucks for comment, but has not heard back.

We also reached out to the United Stated Department of Health and Human Services for additional information about Kennedy's comment about the food chain providing safety data.

"For far too long, the GRAS loophole has allowed ingredients to enter the food supply without meaningful transparency or FDA oversight," Press Secretary Emily Hilliard said in a statement. "Under Secretary Kennedy's leadership, HHS is taking action to close those gaps and restore public trust. Over the past year, we have advanced reforms to strengthen oversight of the GRAS pathway, including steps toward requiring greater notification, enhancing interagency review, and increasing transparency around food ingredient safety through proposed rulemaking. Americans deserve to know what is in their food, and we are committed to ensuring that all ingredients added to the food supply are backed by rigorous science and safety, and are introduced through transparent processes."