NBC News
California lawmakers have approved a groundbreaking bill that would ban six artificial colors from foods served in the state’s public schools, sending it to Gov. Gavin Newsom for his signature.
The initiative, approved by the California legislature on Thursday, would ban the provision of food and drinks to students during school hours that contain synthetic dyes linked to neurobehavioral problems in some children.
It was introduced by Democratic Assembly member Jesse Gabriel and co-sponsored by Consumer Reports and the Environmental Working Group, a health research and advocacy organization.
If the Democratic governor signs the bill into law, California will become the first state to ban these additives in school cafeterias. The law would come into force in December 2027.
“California has a responsibility to protect our students from chemicals that harm children and interfere with their ability to learn,” Gabriel said in a statement. “This law will empower schools to better protect the health and well-being of our children and encourage manufacturers to stop using these harmful additives.”
Known as the California School Food Safety Act, Assembly Bill 2316 would ban the additives Red 40; Yellow 5 and 6; Blue 1 and 2; and Green 3, which Gabriel has called “non-essential ingredients” for which there are natural alternatives such as turmeric, beet juice and pomegranate juice.
The bill would not ban any food or drink, but would require substitutions that can be as small as changing a single ingredient in recipes, according to Gabriel.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said it has found no causal link between behavioral problems and synthetic dyes in children in the general population who have not been diagnosed with disorders such as attention deficit or hyperactivity disorder.
But a comprehensive 2021 review by the Environmental Protection Agency’s California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, cited in the bill, concluded that “synthetic food colors are associated with adverse neurobehavioral effects, including inattention, hyperactivity, and restlessness in sensitive children,” and that evidence points to a link between exposure to such colors and negative behavioral outcomes in certain children “with and without preexisting behavioral disorders.”
The bill was passed after diagnoses of attention deficit disorder (ADHD) have risen in recent years across the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
An FDA spokesperson told NBC News on Friday that evaluating new data on the safety of chemicals in food is a “priority” and that the agency has read the information cited in the California bill.
“The totality of scientific evidence shows that most children have no adverse effects from consuming foods with color additives, but some evidence suggests that certain children may be sensitive to them,” the spokesperson said in an email. “The FDA will continue to evaluate emerging science and ensure the safety of approved color additives.”
The move follows passage of the California Food Safety Act last year, which was also introduced by Gabriel and banned — effective January 2027 — four food additives that have been linked to potential health problems in products sold statewide.
Among the banned chemicals was brominated vegetable oil, which is often used as a stabilizer in citrus-flavored beverages. In July, the FDA concluded that brominated vegetable oil was unsafe for human consumption and revoked its approval for use in foods and beverages nationwide.
The California Food Safety Act also banned potassium bromate, propylparaben and Red 3 from supermarket shelves statewide. Such additives have been linked to health problems ranging from hormone disruption to cancer.
Melanie Benesh, vice president of government affairs for the Environmental Working Group, welcomed the latest move by California lawmakers.
“This is a huge victory for school-aged children and their parents in California. The evidence is pretty compelling that some children are very sensitive to these dyes and should not have to worry about their exposure to them impacting their ability to concentrate and learn in school,” she said.
Benesh urged the FDA to reconsider allowing some of these synthetic dyes in foods nationwide.
“The FDA should take action and steps to make sure all of our children are protected from what is in their food,” Benesh said. “A lot of those vibrant colors are just in foods to make them more appealing to kids. They don’t add any nutritional value.”
