Dive Brief:
- The FDA is revoking authorization of three chemicals for use in the production of color additives amid concerns the substances could cause cancer.
- The department revoked use of methylene chloride, ethylene dichloride, and trichloroethylene when used for production of annatto extract, paprika oleoresin, and turmeric oleoresin. The FDA said it confirmed the chemicals have largely been abandoned by the food industry for use in food dyes.
- It also rescinded use of methylene chloride, a solvent in paint strippers, from being used in inks marking fruits and vegetables, citing evidence the substance has been found to cause cancer in humans or animals. The revocations take effect Jan. 11.
Dive Insight:
Consumer concerns around artificial dyes have become a central pillar of the Make America Healthy Again agenda. While much of that agenda has relied on voluntary action from the industry, the FDA has taken some steps to curtail use of synthetic dyes in limited cases, often focusing on outdated and rarely used chemicals.
Earlier this year, the department revoked use of Orange B and Citrus Red No. 2, noting the colors have largely been abandoned by the food industry. At the time, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the move was part of a larger effort to modernize food safety regulations by eliminating "outdated authorizations for petroleum-based color additives that are no longer used."
Consumer advocacy groups took issue with the FDA's recent reasoning for revoking use of methylene chloride, ethylene dichloride and trichloroethylene, saying the department used a technicality that leaves the door open for future carcinogens to enter the food supply.
While the FDA agreed to revoke the substances on industry claims of abandonment, it denied the Environmental Defense Fund's petition to ban the chemicals on the basis they cause cancer, ruling the substances are impurities in color additives, not color additives themselves.
"Classifying these cancer-causing chemicals as 'impurities' does not eliminate their potential to harm people," the Environmental Defense Fund said in a statement. "FDA’s reasoning, if continued in future decisions, threatens to leave Americans exposed to cancer causing chemicals in their food."
The FDA is prohibited from approving any color additive found to cause cancer in humans and rats at any dose under the Delaney clause, a provision introduced as part of a 1958 law that established modern day food additive regulations. The clause prompted the FDA to revoke use of Red No. 3 last year.
The department cited the Delaney clause in methylene chloride use for fruit and vegetable inks. However, because it's considered an impurity by the agency, the clause doesn't extend to the solvent's use in food dye.
The FDA also has yet to act on a related petition to remove other uses of methylene chloride, including for decaffeinating coffee. Earlier this year, a federal court threw out EPA restrictions that banned most uses of methylene chloride, saying the agency went too far with prohibitions.
"The FDA must put consumer health ahead of industry interests to faithfully implement the Delaney Clause, which prohibits the use of cancer-causing ingredients in food," Maria Doa, senior director of chemicals policy at the Environmental Defense Fund, said in a statement. "This means continuing to eliminate all uses of carcinogens still permitted in our food supply, regardless of industry buy-in.”
