Ban On Skittles, Popular Candies And Drinks Passes CA Assembly

CALIFORNIA — California is another step closer to passing a law that would ban popular candies such as Skittles and other processed foods and drinks that contain chemicals linked to cancer and other health issues.

Assembly Bill 418, proposed by Assemblymembers Jesse Gabriel (D-Woodland Hills) and Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland), was recently passed by the California State Assembly. The bill would ban the manufacture, sale and distribution of foods and drinks containing brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, red dye No. 3, or titanium dioxide starting in 2025.

The long list of foods and drinks that contain one or more of those ingredients include Skittles, Hot Tamales, Nerds, Sour Patch Kids, Starburst, Orange Crush and Mountain Dew, among many others.

Studies have linked the chemical additives listed in AB 418 with a variety of health issues, including increased risk of cancer, behavioral issues in children, harm to the reproductive system, and damage to the immune system. As a result, Gabriel said many major brands and manufacturers — including Coke, Pepsi, Gatorade, Dunkin', Papa John's and Panera — have already stopped using these additives in their products.

The European Union has already banned the five chemicals listed in the bill. If the law is passed, California would become the first U.S. state to do the same.

"It's unacceptable that the U.S. is so far behind the rest of the world when it comes to banning these dangerous additives," Gabriel said in a statement. "We don't love our children any less than they do in Europe, and it's not too much to ask food and beverage manufacturers to switch to the safer alternative ingredients that they already use in Europe and so many other nations around the globe."

AB418 will now head to the State Senate, where it is expected to be heard in committees in the coming weeks.