Food industry advocates have protested efforts to ban food additives, arguing the laws will make food more expensive. But supporters of the measures say the \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d movement associated with newly appointed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is giving fresh momentum to the efforts.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Call it a \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d (MAHA) moment. At least a dozen U.S. states \u2014 from traditionally conservative Oklahoma to liberal-leaning New York \u2014 are rushing to pass laws outlawing commonly used dyes and other chemical additives in foods, citing a need to protect public health.<\/p>\n In one of the most far-reaching efforts,\u00a0West Virginia<\/a>, on March 5, advanced a sweeping ban on a range of common food dyes that have been linked to\u00a0health<\/a>\u00a0problems, particularly for children, with overwhelming support from both Republicans and Democrats.<\/p>\n The new law prohibits the sale of any food product containing certain yellow, blue, green and\u00a0red dyes<\/a>\u00a0often found in candies, snacks and other foods and drinks, and goes much further than any other state in moving to eliminate the chemicals from store shelves.<\/p>\n The West Virginia measure has passed both legislative chambers and is expected to receive final clearance within the next week to move to the governor\u2019s desk for signing.<\/p>\n Public health advocates have been\u00a0lobbying for state and federal action<\/a>\u00a0for years, pointing to research that links\u00a0food dyes<\/a>\u00a0and other\u00a0chemical additives<\/a>\u00a0to a range of health risks, including neurobehavioral problems and cancers.<\/p>\n Food industry advocates have protested efforts to ban the additives, citing what they say is a lack of proof that the chemicals are harmful to people and arguing such laws will make food more expensive.<\/p>\n But supporters of the measures say the\u00a0MAHA movement<\/a>\u00a0associated with newly appointed Health and Human Services Secretary\u00a0Robert F. Kennedy Jr<\/a>. is giving fresh momentum to the efforts.<\/p>\n Kennedy has long warned about chemical additives in food and vowed in his\u00a0confirmation hearing<\/a>\u00a0before Congress to \u201cscrutinize the chemical additives in our\u00a0food supply<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a lot of support for these measures now for a few reasons. The most obvious one is the MAHA movement,\u201d said Laura Wakim Chapman, chair of the West Virginia Senate Health and Human Resources Committee.<\/p>\n \u201cViral videos and social media content is informing the public about the dangers of unnecessary\u00a0food additives<\/a>. I am a mother of two and care deeply about their health. I think most parents do.\u201d<\/p>\n In January, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) banned one food dye \u2014\u00a0red dye No. 3<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 but did so begrudgingly, saying the\u00a0agency<\/a>\u00a0was forced as \u201ca matter of law\u201d to take the step but does not believe the dye poses an actual health risk to people.<\/p>\n The agency acted only after advocates petitioned for the ban, citing industry studies that linked red dye No. 3 to cancer in rodents more than 30 years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cI think many see FDA\u2019s belated ban on Red 3 as further evidence that FDA is not very effective at safeguarding the food supply,\u201d said Lisa Lefferts, an environmental health consultant who served on a 2011 FDA advisory board. \u201cRepublicans are taking a more active role in this issue than ever before.\u201d<\/p>\n In\u00a0Virginia<\/a>, lawmakers recently passed a bill that bans seven food dyes from public schools. With strong bipartisan support, the law now awaits the governor\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n \u201cConsumers are demanding better food choices and questioning why other countries restrict harmful dyes while America continues to allow them,\u201d said Hillary Pugh Kent, a Republican in the Virginia legislature who led the bill\u2019s passage.<\/p>\n And\u00a0Oklahoma<\/a>, on March 3, advanced its own similar measure, which would ban 21 synthetic dyes and other additives from food distributed in the state.<\/p>\n The proposed law would give manufacturers until January 2027 to reformulate their products but would immediately require them to display a warning label if their products contain any of the 21 additives.<\/p>\n New York lawmakers similarly have launched an effort to force food companies to eliminate synthetic dyes and chemical additives from their products. The proposed law there would ban seven food dyes from food sold or served in public schools and would ban statewide sales of foods with red dye No. 3 and two other food additives.<\/p>\n The law would also require food companies to disclose \u201csecret\u201d food ingredients to the public that have been allowed into the marketplace under a federal standard known as \u201cgenerally recognized as safe<\/a>,\u201d or GRAS.<\/p>\n The\u00a0New York law<\/a>\u00a0takes specific aim at the FDA and concerns about lax federal oversight, stating that food companies may not use the FDA\u2019s view of the safety of the chemicals \u201cas a defense.\u201d<\/p>\n California is largely seen as a leading state in the movement,\u00a0banning six food dyes<\/a>\u00a0from foods served to\u00a0children in public schools<\/a>\u00a0in September 2024, as well as\u00a0banning red dye No. 3<\/a>\u00a0and three other chemical additives from foods sold statewide in 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cI think RFK (Kennedy) is bringing to light concerns that we all hold,\u201d said Jennifer Pomeranz, associate professor of public health policy and management at New York University.<\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot of legislators saw the inaction by the FDA so more people are coming to the table \u2026 tired of waiting for the federal government to do something.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked for comment on the legislative activity, the National Confectioners Association said that the measures \u201cwill make food significantly more expensive for, and significantly less accessible to, people in the states that pass them.\u201d<\/p>\n The association also said the FDA should be the final arbiter for food additives.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile there is a role for state legislators and public health officials to play in the ongoing conversation about food additives, decision making should be left to FDA,\u201d the National Confectioners Association said.<\/p>\n Originally published by\u00a0The New Lede<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/naturalblaze.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/states-laws-ban-food-dyes-feature-1024x534-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n