Latest news with #TexasSenateBill25
Hindustan Times
7 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Doritos, M&Ms, Skittles could be forced to include warning labels on packaged foods in Texas
A Texas bill on the verge of becoming law would require labels on packaged food from Skittles to Mountain Dew that warn about ingredients 'not recommended for human consumption' by other countries. Also Read | Gastroenterlogist shares '3 worst foods he avoids as a liver specialist to protect the liver' Texas Senate Bill 25, backed by Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F Kennedy Jr, is now awaiting the signature of Gov Greg Abbott. Foods containing certain ingredients would require warning labels on new packaging beginning in 2027 in order to be sold in Texas, which is the second-most populous US state with 31 million residents. The bill lists more than 40 ingredients, including synthetic food dyes and bleached flour. Many, but not all, of the additives are banned or require warnings in other countries. If approved, the impact on the packaged-food industry could be far reaching: When companies are forced to comply with state regulations, they have often opted to adopt those changes nationwide to streamline production. It would also mark one of the most substantive victories yet for the Make America Healthy Again movement, Kennedy's signature effort. The bill's supporters have said it has Kennedy's backing: Rep. Lacey Hull, a state lawmaker who was one of the bill's sponsors in the House, said she received a call from him when it passed the legislature. Abbott has yet to commit to signing the bill, however. 'Governor Abbott will continue to work with the legislature to ensure Texans have access to healthy foods to care for themselves and their families and will thoughtfully review any legislation they send to his desk,' Andrew Mahaleris, his press secretary, said in a statement to Bloomberg News before the bill reached Abbott on June 1. The governor's office didn't respond to an updated request for comment. Texas is seen as one of the most business-friendly states in the US, with no state income tax for individuals and generally a lighter approach to regulations. If Abbott signs the bill, 'he will go down as a historical figure as the man who broke the food industry's back on these chemicals,' said food activist Vani Hari, also known as Food Babe. 'This is something that will spawn incredible change within the food industry.' HHS didn't respond to a request for comment. The bill contains a possible carve-out: If either the Food and Drug Administration or Department of Agriculture deem an ingredient safe, restrict its use, including by adding their own warning, or ban it outright after September 1, the state's own labels for that ingredient won't be required. And if the federal government mandates labelling for 'ultra-processed or processed foods,' that would also supersede Texas' required labels. But if the FDA, which falls under Kennedy's jurisdiction, doesn't declare the listed ingredients safe or offer new qualifications for their use, the warnings would be required for new food labels developed and copyrighted starting in 2027. While some of the ingredients slated for warning labels, such as titanium dioxide and bleached flour, are more highly regulated in other countries, others, like the emulsifier DATEM, have less stringent regulations. A wide range of foods would require a warning label on new packaging to be sold in Texas under the bill, barring changes in formulation. These include Mars Inc.'s Skittles and M&Ms, WK Kellogg Co.'s Froot Loops, PepsiCo Inc.'s Mountain Dew and Nacho Cheese Doritos, which use synthetic dyes. HHS and the FDA said in April that they'll work with food producers to eliminate the dyes by the end of 2026. Industry groups have said no agreement exists on the matter. BHT, a preservative listed in the Texas bill, is found in cereals like General Mills Inc.'s Cinnamon Toast Crunch. BHA, which is also listed, is present in deli meats, but the bill exempts foods regulated by the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, which oversees meat, poultry and eggs. Pastries such as General Mills' Pillsbury Toaster Strudel and Entenmann's Little Bites Chocolate Chip Muffins, made by Grupo Bimbo SAB, use bleached flours. Titanium dioxide, used for colouring and shine, is used in Mondelez International Inc.'s Sour Patch Kids Watermelon. Other products that would be affected include white breads made by Wonder and Sara Lee brands and Campbell's Company's Pepperidge Farms, which all use DATEM. The bill would require the warnings appear in a font size that's no smaller than the smallest text for other FDA-required information. The wording would need to appear in a 'prominent and reasonably visible location' and have 'sufficiently high contrast.' Industry groups and companies, including PepsiCo, Mondelez, Coca-Cola Co., Conagra Brands Inc., and Walmart Inc sent the Texas legislature a letter dated May 19 urging lawmakers not to pass the initiative. 'As it's written, the food labeling provision in this bill casts an incredibly wide net — triggering warning labels on everyday grocery items based on assertions that foreign governments have banned such items, rather than on standards established by Texas regulators or by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration,' the companies and groups wrote in the letter. Conagra declined to comment. The other companies didn't immediately provide comment to Bloomberg News. The Consumer Brands Association, an industry group for some of the country's largest food companies, urged Abbott to veto the bill. 'The ingredients used in the U.S. food supply are safe and have been rigorously studied following an objective science and risk-based evaluation process,' said John Hewitt, senior vice president of state affairs for CBA. 'The labelling requirements of SB 25 mandate inaccurate warning language, create legal risks for brands and drive consumer confusion and higher costs.' Jura Liaukonyte, a professor of marketing and applied economics at Cornell University, said state laws have had a wider impact on the industry in the past, including a Vermont law from about a decade ago that briefly required foods to disclose the use of most genetically modified organisms. This caused some companies to add the labels nationwide, according to her research. Similarly, California's Proposition 65 product warnings have spread to some products nationwide, she said.
USA Today
7 days ago
- Business
- USA Today
Doritos, Mountain Dew could get warning labels in this state
Doritos, Mountain Dew could get warning labels in this state Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has yet to indicate if he plans to sign the bill into law. Show Caption Hide Caption FDA redefines what foods can be labeled as 'healthy' Foods will be required to contain certain ingredients and be under specific limits for added sugar, saturated fat and sodium to be marketed as "healthy." Scripps News A bipartisan bill out of Texas, awaiting Gov. Greg Abbott's signature, could change food and drink packaging as we know it nationwide. Texas Senate Bill 25 passed unanimously in the state senate before being forwarded to Abbott's desk on June 1, where it is under review. Among provisions for education on nutrition and health, one set of proposed regulations would require that packaging for food or drink items contain warnings about ingredients "not recommended for human consumption." The commonly used ingredients listed in the bill are legal to use in the U.S., but most are subject to some sort of ban or more stringent regulation in other countries State lawmaker Rep. Lacey Hull told Bloomberg that Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called her to voice his support for the bill, which aligns with initiatives in his "Make America Healthy Again" movement. HHS press secretary Emily G. Hilliard told USA TODAY in an email that, "Secretary Kennedy encourages states to promote healthy practices and enhance consumer transparency in food labeling. Americans deserve to know what's in their food so they can make informed choices for themselves and their families." While the bill managed to reach across a contentious political aisle, it is not universally popular. John Hewitt, Senior Vice President of State Affairs for the Consumer Brands Association, urged the governor not to sign it in a statement shared with USA TODAY, saying, "The ingredients used in the U.S. food supply are safe and have been rigorously studied following an objective science and risk-based evaluation process. The labeling requirements of SB 25 mandate inaccurate warning language, create legal risks for brands and drive consumer confusion and higher costs." Gov. Abbott has yet to indicate if he plans to sign the bill into law. In a statement to USA TODAY on Tuesday, June 3, press secretary Andrew Mahaleris said, 'Governor Abbott will continue to work with the legislature to ensure Texans have access to healthy foods to care for themselves and their families and will thoughtfully review any legislation they send to his desk.' What's in Texas Senate Bill 25 about food labels? Texas Senate Bill 25 would require that specific warning labels be placed on products intended for human consumption if they use certain ingredients like bleached flour, food dyes, sweeteners, oils and preservatives. Because manufacturers generally aim for uniformity and efficiency, as reported by Bloomberg, they will often expand practices employed to comply with state laws nationwide, meaning this change could impact the packaged food industry on a larger scale. The bill would require that manufacturers display the warning label prominently if their product contains one of 44 listed ingredients, most of which have some form of ban, warning or regulation in other Western countries despite being legal in the U.S. The proposed label reads as follows: "WARNING: This product contains an ingredient that is not recommended for human consumption by the appropriate authority in Australia, Canada, the European Union, or the United Kingdom." Manufacturers, and in some cases retailers, would also be required to post a similar statement on websites on which applicable products are offered for sale. This requirement would not apply to products not intended for human consumption; food prepared, served, or sold in restaurants or retail locations; drugs or dietary supplements; or agricultural products on which pesticides or other such chemicals were used in their production, storage or transportation. Regulations set by federal agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or Surgeon General would supersede these state-level rules, meaning products already overseen or required to utilize certain labels by these agencies would not need an additional warning. The FDA deeming ingredients safe or setting new guidelines for their use would also exempt them from labeling. Which ingredients are listed in the bill? acetylated esters of mono- and diglycerides (acetic acid ester) anisole azodicarbonamide (ADA) butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) bleached flour blue 1 (CAS 3844-45-9) blue 2 (CAS 860-22-0) bromated flour calcium bromate canthaxanthin certified food colors by the United States Food and Drug Administration citrus red 2 (CAS 6358-53-8) diacetyl diacetyl tartaric and fatty acid esters of mono- and diglycerides (DATEM) dimethylamylamine (DMAA) dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (DSS) ficin green 3 (CAS 2353-45-9) interesterified palm oil interesterified soybean oil lactylated fatty acid esters of glycerol and propylene glycol lye morpholine olestra partially hydrogenated oil (PHO) potassium aluminum sulfate potassium bromate potassium iodate propylene oxide propylparaben red 3 (CAS 16423-68-0) red 4 (CAS 4548-53-2) red 40 (CAS 25956-17-6) sodium aluminum sulfate sodium lauryl sulfate sodium stearyl fumarate stearyl tartrate synthetic trans fatty acid thiodipropionic acid titanium dioxide toluene yellow 5 (CAS 1934-21-0) yellow 6 (CAS 2783-94-0) Which foods could be impacted? Packaged and processed foods of all kinds could be impacted by the bill. If it passes, consumers will begin seeing the warning on labels developed and copyrighted beginning in 2027. Chips, candy and snack products like Doritos, Ruffles, Lay's flavored chips, microwaved popcorn, M&Ms, Sour Patch Kids and Skittles would need to be labeled, along with cereals like Froot Loops and Cap'n Crunch. Sweets like Twinkies or Hostess snack cakes and packaged cookies like Oreos and Chips Ahoy! contain the offending ingredients, along with frozen dinners, instant noodles, some breads and even processed meats like sausages and hot dogs. Drinks like Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Capri Sun, Hawaiian Punch and Juicy Juice would also be affected. RFK Jr.'s push for ingredient reviews, tighter regulations In April, the FDA and RFK announced plans to "phase out" petroleum-based synthetic dyes previously allowed under FDA regulations from the U.S. food and drug supply by the end of 2026. No formal agreement or legislation was passed officially banning the substances. Instead, HHS and the FDA have a "mutual understanding" with the food industry that the dyes will be progressively removed, according to Kennedy. Are food dyes getting banned in the US?: What know to about 8 dyes being phased out During an April 22 press conference, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said the agency intended to revoke the approval of some dyes and work with industry leaders to substitute petrochemical dyes with "natural" ones. A press statement released by the FDA also said it plans to establish a "national standard and timeline for the transition from petrochemical-based dyes to natural alternatives." The FDA will authorize four new natural color additives and expedite the approval of more, according to its statement. The agency will also partner with the National Institutes of Health to research the effect food additives have on children's health and development.
