Four common food additives, considered to allegedly be toxic, are now illegal to be manufactured or sold in the state.
QUICK FACTS:
- California has banned selling four common “toxic” food additives at stores in the state.
- State Assembly Bill 418, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on October 7, will ban the use of brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, and red dye No. 3 from food products across the market.
- According to the Environmental Working Group, a D.C.-based advocacy group aimed at limiting toxic exposures in food, water, and the environment, the additives are found in over 12,000 food products.
- “The Governor’s signature today represents a huge step in our effort to protect children and families in California from dangerous and toxic chemicals in our food supply,” the bill’s author, Assemblyman Jesse Gabriel, said.
- According to the bill, the chemicals have been banned in all nations within the European Union after clinical research found that they are linked to cancer, reproductive issues, and behavioral and developmental problems in children.
- As California continues to maintain the fifth-largest economy in the world, some say that the bill could affect food across the rest of the country as companies move to create new products.
ASSEMBLYMAN JESSE GABRIEL ON CALIFORNIA’S BAN ON FOUR CHEMICALS IN FOOD:
“We have incredible confidence that consumers are still going to be able to enjoy all the products that we know and love here in the United States, just without those harmful chemicals,” Gabriel said.
BACKGROUND:
- Despite California’s push to ban plastic straws in recent years, recent research has cast doubt on the environmental safety of paper straws, which were previously touted as a more eco-friendly alternative to plastic.
- It turns out these supposedly green alternatives might contain chemicals detrimental to both the environment and human health.
- The study discovered the presence of poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in most paper and bamboo straws.
- Dr. Thimo Groffen from the University of Antwerp commented, “Straws made from plant-based materials, such as paper and bamboo, are often advertised as being more sustainable and eco-friendly than those made from plastic.”
- “However, the presence of PFAS in these straws means that’s not necessarily true,” Groffen said.
- These potentially hazardous chemicals, PFAS, are commonly utilized in the production of water-resistant items, ranging from food packaging to water-resistant fabrics.
- Alarmingly, continuous exposure to these chemicals has been linked to increased blood pressure in expectant mothers, a higher risk of kidney cancer, and altered liver enzymes.
