Americans are panicking over the state of their food, questioning whether the items on their plate are artificial or real.
Is that watermelon actually watermelon? Is that cheese actually cheese? And why is that banana bending like it’s made of rubber?
These are some of the concerns many TikTokers have been sharing online, asking, “why is all of our food fake?”
Highlights
- TikTokers are questioning whether America’s food has become “fake.”
- Viral videos show bizarrely bendy, stretchy and seemingly indestructible food items.
- The government is now proposing tighter oversight of GRAS or “generally recognized as safe” ingredients.
Americans are panicking over the state of their food, questioning whether the items on their plate are artificial or real
Netizens have been sharing a bizarre series of clips on Tiktok, showing their everyday foods behaving like twisty, bendy, unsoakable, and unbreakable objects.
In one video, there was ice cream that refused to melt even when doused under running hot water.
Other clips captured baffled users showing a banana and a bar of chocolate looking like they could bend into different yoga positions.
There were also strawberries that could be pressed like sponges, cheese that seemingly didn’t melt in a hot pan, and bread that refused to soak up water.
And then there was a potato that looked perfectly normal but seemed completely hollow once it was cooked.
Bizarre videos show ice cream, cheese, bread, fruit and potatoes behaving strangely
“It’s time to leave America,” one commented on the viral video, while another said, “Stop grocery shopping at Walmart.”
Another commented, “They trying to take us out with all the fake food.”
“The ice cream refusing to melt under hot water is scary,” said another.
“All this shxt poison & our healthcare is a scam,” one wrote.
“Where the hell are you getting this weird a** food?” one asked.
Several people suggested going natural, saying, “Grow your own food or go directly to farms to buy. We have to stop shopping at commercial grocery stores bc they’re closer/cheaper/more convenient. Your health and longevity is not worth it.”
“Grow your backyard Garden. Get them mason jars out like our granny's did!” another advised.
Experts say weird food textures don’t automatically mean something is unsafe
As Americans grow increasingly suspicious of their grocery store items, questions have been raised about whether the modern food supply has become too artificial, too processed, or even unsafe.
“We understand why these videos take off, because they’re tapping into something real: people have lost a lot of trust in where their food comes from,” Justin and Travis Maderia, commercial fishermen and founders of Lobsterboys, told the New York Post.
It is a known practice for producers and manufactures to add ingredients and preservatives for a variety of reasons, such as easier transportation, increasing shelf life, keeping a control on the texture, reducing costs, and maintaining consistency across the entire product line.
A 2025 CDC report revealed that processed foods have increasingly become part of the American diet, with the mean percentage of total calories consumed from ultra-processed foods among those age 1 year and older being 55.0% during August 2021–August 2023, according to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
When it comes to the items consumed, sandwiches (including burgers), sweet bakery products, savory snacks, and sweetened beverages were among the top five sources of calories from ultra-processed foods among youth and adults.
Those aged between 1 to 18 years consumed a higher percentage of calories from ultra-processed foods (61.9%) than adults age 19 and older (53.0%).
The bigger concern is how much ultra-processed food Americans eat
For decades, companies in the food and beverage sector have managed to add new ingredients without review by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) by claiming they ar “generally recognized as safe” or GRAS.
The system was originally meant for familiar ingredients such as flour and baking soda, but food safety critics say companies have increasingly used it for newer additives, including thickeners, extracts, and flavorings, with little evidence to prove that they are safe for consumption.
Critics say the current system has allowed at least 1,000 substances into the food supply with little evidence of formal FDA scrutiny.
Now, the government is pushing to make that process harder and have proposed a new rule, under which companies would have to notify the government when they decide an ingredient qualifies as GRAS.
This would close what food safety experts have long criticized as a major loophole.
“We don’t even know exactly how many chemicals are in the food that Americans eat every day, and the food industry continues to develop novel compounds and chemical combinations that do not exist in nature,” Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said at an event earlier this month.
“Our bodies did not evolve consuming many of these substances, and that makes rigorous science and transparent safety review even more important,” he added.
Food companies have long been able to add some ingredients without FDA review under the GRAS system
Certified nutrition coach Rena Awada acknowledged that manufacturers use starches, oils, gums, emulsifiers, flavorings, colors, and preservatives for various reasons. But this might not always be a bad thing, she said.
For instance, she said canned beans and frozen veggies might fall under the processed category but wouldn’t be unhealthy.
There are also some products that are meant to imitate a real food item without being unsafe. For example, imitation crab is made to resemble and taste like crab by using processed and flavored white fish.
The concern comes when processing is used to load foods with high amounts of added sugar, sodium, saturated fat or other ingredients while stripping away their nutritional value.
Health-related concerns are amplified because many ultra-processed foods are designed to be especially convenient and tasty, making it easy to overeat.
Awada recommended reading the food label before consuming the product.
Jill Darminio, a registered dietitian and System Clinical Nutrition Manager, also advised consumers to focus on consuming a balanced meal. Darminio also said it's important to pay attention to portions and the frequency of consuming ultra-procesed foods.
“Ultra-processed foods are safe to include in a diet and do not need to be eliminated,” the dietician told the outlet.
“That bread,” one commented on the video, “you can wash dishes with that one”
