FDA Asleep at the Switch?

California has introduced legislation banning Additives including Red dye number 3, brominated vegetable oils and potassium bromate from human food.  Similar action is contemplated by Indiana, Illinois and by both Washington and New York states.

A  patchwork approach to banning specific additives for human food although based on valid scientific criteria and potentially benefiting consumers in those states will create problems for food manufacturers in their formulation and labeling.  It would be preferable for the implicated ingredients to be designated as unacceptable by the federal government through FDA action creating a level playing field.  The FDA has been tardy in assembling data and making decisions that would be beneficial to consumers and convenient for manufacturers.  In some respects, state agencies including those in California and New York are more influenced by the European Union that employs the precautionary principle than the FDA.

The difference between approaches to food safety in Europe and the U.S. is a function of the pressure exerted by industry lobby groups by both industry and consumer advocacy organizations on U.S. federal agencies.  In many instances U.S. manufacturers have voluntarily ceased using additives and compounds that are regarded as potentially or overtly harmful without regulatory intervention.  Brominated vegetable oil has not been used in citrus-flavored beverages for many years in the U.S. despite the state restrictions.