CA Lawmaker Proposes Ban on Seven Additives in Schools

Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel introduced a bill to ban seven food additives within California’s public school system, reports NBC News. The bulk of the bill focuses on artificial dyes found in cereals, condiments, and baked goods, among other foods and beverages.

"This legislation will not ban any specific foods or products," Gabriel said Tuesday at a virtual news conference. "The goal here is to encourage companies to make minor modifications to products sold in California if they want their products to be sold in California public schools."

Assembly Bill 2316 would prohibit cafeterias within schools from offering foods containing additives that have been linked to hyperactivity and behavioral issues, as well as one ingredient currently banned by the EU over concerns that it may damage DNA and cause cancer—titanium dioxide, according to the report. The other additives are dyes: Red 40, Green 3, Blue 1, Blue 2, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6.

Gabriel said that the recipe tweaks for affected products would be minor, often only requiring a change of one ingredient. The lawmaker called synthetic dyes “nonessential ingredients,” adding “These are chemicals that are added to food to make them appear more appealing. But for all of them, there are specific alternatives.”

If signed into law this year, the bill would go into effect at the beginning of 2025. Full Story