The Delaney clause was an amendment to the Food, Drugs, and Cosmetic Act of 1958 , named after Congressman James Delaney of New York. It said:

"the Secretary [of the Food and Drug Administration] shall not approve for use in food any chemical additive found to induce cancer in man, or, after tests, found to induce cancer in animals."

The Delaney clause was later repealed in 1996 by an amendment to Title IV of the Food Quality Protection Act.

See: precautionary principle