Advocates of the California Food Safety Act, which bans the production, distribution, and sale of food and beverages containing brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, and Red Dye No. 3, highlight that many other countries have already prohibited some of these ingredients. Companies will have a few years to adjust their recipes to offer similar food and drink items with alternative ingredients before the law takes effect in January 2027. “Californians will continue to access and enjoy their favorite food products while having greater confidence in their safety,” stated Governor Gavin Newsom. New York is also moving forward with a similar bill in its state legislature, introduced in March, which aims to ban five food additives, including the aforementioned substances and titanium dioxide, which was an addition from the California bill.
The proposed legislation emphasizes that while food additives are commonly used to enhance shelf life, flavor, or texture, research indicates that the health effects associated with increased consumption of these additives are raising concerns about their potential dangers. This marks the first instance of a state prohibiting ingredients that the FDA still allows. In 2018, the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) received funding to conduct a risk assessment on the impacts of synthetic food dyes on children. The findings revealed that the percentage of American children and adolescents diagnosed with ADHD has risen from an estimated 6.1% to 10.2% over the past two decades, as cited in the bill’s Assembly Floor Analysis. Additionally, the report noted that current federal safety levels for synthetic food dyes may not adequately protect children’s behavioral health, as these guidelines were established by the FDA decades ago.
Countries such as the EU, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China, and Japan have already banned these four ingredients. “It’s unacceptable that the U.S. lags significantly behind the rest of the world in food safety,” remarked Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel on Facebook. He added that major food corporations like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have voluntarily removed the additives from their products, stating that this legislative effort by California lawmakers represents a significant advancement in protecting children and families. Amidst these changes, the discontinuation of Citracal D in the market has also raised concerns among consumers about the availability of safe dietary supplements, further highlighting the need for comprehensive food safety measures.