For far too many parents, navigating the food system feels like traversing a minefield. CFA is working to address one source of this anxiety: artificial dyes.

For decades, researchers have suspected that several artificial dyes contribute to hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder in children. These suspicions were recently confirmed by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. After comprehensively and systematically reviewing the evidence, the agency concluded in 2021 that several dyes “cause or exacerbate neurobehavioral problems in some children.” Specifically, the agency’s report fingers the color additives FD&C Blue No. 1, FD&C Blue No. 2, FD&C Green No. 3, FD&C Red No. 3, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 5, and FD&C Yellow No. 6.

Last year, CFA joined consumer advocacy partners in petitioning the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to require a warning label on dye-containing foods and supplements to alert consumers about the adverse effects these dyes have on children’s neurobehavior. Earlier this month, I testified with other petitioner representatives, and experts including toxicologists, epidemiologists, and pediatricians, at  a public hearing that CDPH held on the group’s petition. We sought to counter industry trade groups’ and paid consultants’ arguments against acting on the science.

One common argument was that these dyes are safe because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved them, and FDA is the expert. However, FDA’s approval of these dyes happened in the 80s or even earlier, before the dawn of the personal computer, never mind the genetic analysis technologies that have shed light on why food dyes appear to cause hyperactivity in some children, and even appear to have as large an effect on children’s behavior as lead does on children’s IQ.

Industry has argued that FDA’s ongoing market surveillance should suffice to ensure public protections against these food dyes remain up-to-date. However, FDA’s market surveillance of the harms caused by these dyes has let consumers down, in part because FDA is underfunded and under resourced. The entire FDA Office of Food Additives Safety—responsible for regulating more than 10,000 chemicals in food and a multi-billion-dollar industry—has just over 100 full-time technical staff. And it does not currently have a director.

According to a 2013 study of over 4,000 chemicals purposely added to food such as flavors, preservatives, and sweeteners, less than 22% had sufficient data to estimate how much is safe to eat, and less than 7% were tested for developmental or reproductive effects. FDA may not even know that a chemical is in the food supply, thanks to the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) process, under which food companies have been allowed to determine themselves that over a thousand food chemicals are Generally Recognized as Safe.

Unfortunately, FDA is not going to stand up for consumers on food dyes, but California can. And one big reason for doing so is to establish a level playing field for companies that want to do the right thing. A few years ago, several large companies including General Mills, Kellogg, and Mars made bold pledges to remove artificial colors from their products, but most of them have not followed through. And no wonder! If a company’s competitors can save money and otherwise take advantage of using these chemicals, its hard to make the business case for change.

In Europe, public health authorities have required a warning label on most dyed foods for 15 years. The experience of many leading U.S. companies “across the pond” shows that reformulating foods to remove dyes is feasible and economical. If we arm American consumers with accurate information about food dye harms, we can be confident that it will move the market on this issue just as it has in Europe. Consumers have a right to make educated choices about what foods they purchase and consume. If the FDA can’t stand up to protect consumers, particularly young children, from harmful food dyes, then individual state public health departments should. California, CFA urges you to lead by example and put consumers first.