On August 29, 2024, the California Assembly voted to pass California Assembly Bill (AB) 2316, named the California School Food Safety Act, which aims to ban several synthetic food dyes from foods sold or offered at public schools in the state due to concerns about their toxicity. The bill will now go to Governor Gavin Newsom to be signed into law.

If passed into law, the legislation would go into effect December 31, 2027. The California School Food Safety Act targets red 40, yellow 5, yellow 6, blue 1, blue 2, and green 3 due to their potential developmental and behavioral harms to children. The bill was penned in response to a report published by the California Environmental Protection Agency that linked synthetic food dyes to hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral effects in children, and asserted that current federal Acceptable Daily Intake levels (ADIs) for synthetic food dyes are outdated and not protective of children.

AB 2316 is spearheaded by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-46), who also championed the similarly named California Food Safety Act—a piece of legislation that was successfully signed into law in October 2023, prohibiting the statewide sale or manufacture of foods containing four additives due to toxicity concerns.

The California School Food Safety Act is co-sponsored by watchdog organizations Consumer Reports and the Environmental Working Group (EWG). “Dangerous dyes that put kids at higher risk for hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral issues that get in the way of learning should not be allowed in food sold in schools,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports. For an in-depth discussion with Mr. Ronholm that focuses on U.S. food regulatory policy and food safety legislation, including the current wave of state-level additives bills sweeping the nation, listen to this recent episode of the Food Safety Matters podcast (also available on all major podcast players).

Not all stakeholders are in support of the California Food Safety Act, however. The Consumer Brands Association (CBA) wrote about the bill, “…AB 2316 is attempting to undermine the established process led by our nation’s regulatory body and ignore the existing science... AB 2316 sets a dangerous precedent for state politicians to substitute their own views on food safety ahead of the [nation’s] scientists and risk-based review system. Americans deserve unified guidance that follows the science, not a patchwork of confusing laws.”

Update, September 30, 2024: The California School Food Safety Act has been signed into law by Gov. Newsom.