California law could see Doritos, Cheetos and other colorful snacks removed from schools over common ingredient
Some of the most popular lunchroom snacks of your childhood could soon be banned from California lunch rooms — or become a lot less colorful.
These include the likes of Doritos, M&Ms, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Fruit Loops, Gatorade, Kool-Aid, Starburst, Skittles and more.
It comes after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the California School Food Safety Act, which outlaws a variety of artificial color additives critics say have been linked to developmental and behavior problems in kids.
The ingredients are all approved from human consumption by the Food and Drug Administration.
The law puts food manufacturers on notice that they have until the end of 2027 to purge the offending ingredients from their products, which include dyes like Red 40, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Blue 2, Blue 1 and Green 3.
Those who fail to comply risk their foods being banned from public school vending machines and cafeterias in more than 12,000 Golden State schools.
“Today, we are refusing to accept the status quo, and making it possible for everyone, including school kids, to access nutritious, delicious food without harmful, and often addictive additives,” Newsom said lauding the legislation.
“By giving every child a healthy start, we can set them on the path to a future with less risk of obesity and chronic illness.”
Manufacturers have been instructed to swap out the artificial dyes with natural ingredients like beet or carrot juice, which the European versions of the products have already started doing.
State Assemblyman Jesse Gabriel — who authored the act — said the law will “empower schools to better protect the health and wellbeing of students, and sends a strong message to manufacturers to stop using these harmful additives.”
However, those in the food industry were decidedly less enthusiastic.
The International Food Additives Council said in a statement that the legislation is “misguided” and “increases costs and complexity, ultimately affecting the population that needs nutrition the most while disrupting national food regulations and causing consumer confusion.”
They also noted that the approach being taken by California “fosters unnecessary fear and mistrust in the federal system.”
Signing the act into law is the latest move by the liberal governor to go over and above the FDA. Last year Newsom signed another law that banned ingredients like brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben and red dye 3.
Brands have until January 2027 to strip those ingredients from products or be subject to fines up to $10,000.
