Consumer Reports and the Environmental Working Group are halfway home in their strategy to ban harmful chemicals in food.
They’ve focused on California where a slow but steady approach has landed a favorable 54-11 Assembly vote for AB 418 banning five harmful chemicals from candy, cereals, and other processed food.
Now the bill will be heard and voted on by the California Senate.
If it becomes law in California, the ban will put pressure on other states and the federal Food and Drug Administration to react. FDA has had similar requests pending for many years.
As passed by the California Assembly, the bill would end the use of brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, Red Dye No. 3, and titanium dioxide in popular food products sold in the state.
The chemicals are linked to serious health problems, such as a higher risk of cancer, nervous system damage, and hyperactivity.
The European Union already banned the five substances from use in food, with the narrow exception of Red No. 3 in candied cherries. Given the size of California’s economy, AB.
418 would set an important precedent for improving the safety of many processed foods.
Following Europe’s lead and protecting U.S. consumers is the right step, despite alarmist claims from opponents of the bill that it would end the sale of candy and other popular items in the state.
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