A movement to ban food dyes gains ground across the U.S. amid RFK Jr.'s term

Across the U.S., a longtime push to ban synthetic dyes in food is gaining renewed momentum, with critics of the dyes insisting it’s not a matter of if, but when.

Across the U.S., a longtime push to ban synthetic dyes in food is gaining renewed momentum, with critics of the dyes insisting it’s not a matter of if, but when.

States like West Virginia have cited the Make America Healthy Again movement, led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as a driving force, along with concerns among parents and some scientists that dyes might contribute to behavioral problems in kids — a link the Food and Drug Administration says it is monitoring but hasn’t established.

In the first three months of the year, 20 states — including Oklahoma, West Virginia and New York — have introduced nearly 40 bills aimed at cracking down on artificial dyes and other food additives, the most in any year, according to the Environmental Working Group, a food safety advocacy group.

“We’re really encouraged,” said Brandon Cawood, an advocate for eliminating food dyes who, along with his wife, Whitney, created “To Dye For: The Documentary,” a film that has been cited by West Virginia lawmakers. “Oklahoma, Utah, Tennessee have bills on the table. Florida, New York, Texas, Arizona. All these states all over the place are popping up.”

The FDA has approved 36 color additives, including nine synthetic dyes used in foods and beverages. Among them was Red No. 3, approved for use in foods in 1907, though the agency banned it in January over concerns about possible cancer risks.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/food-dyes-ban-rfk-jr-west-virginia-fda-rcna197180

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