Why Are Some Ingredients Banned in Europe but Not in the US?
This is a common accusation about food ingredients (and some other substances such as pesticides): this chemical is obviously dangerous because it is banned in other countries. Why don’t we follow the example of the Europeans?
The difference lies in governments’ policies on the interpretation of toxicology research, writes IFLScience’s Elizabeth Grossman:
The [European Union] states that where there is substantial and credible evidence of a hazard to human health or the environment, protective measures should be taken despite persisting scientific uncertainty.
In contrast, the US federal government’s approach to chemicals management sets a very high bar for evidence of harm that must be demonstrated before regulatory action is taken.
Here’s an example of how this worked with food coloring. A 2007 studypublished in the Lancet found that children appear to become more hyperactive after consuming certain food colors (red # 40, yellow # 5, and yellow # 6) in sodas that also contain the preservative sodium benzoate. As a result:
- All three dyes are banned in the UK.
- The European Union has not banned dyes, but has required warning labels on products in which they are used.
- The FDA said the results did not determine which colorant was actually to blame, or whether the increase in hyperactivity was large enough to make a real difference (for example, in children’s performance in school or in everyday life). They concluded that science had not shown a causal relationship between dyes and children’s behavior.
So it’s not that Europeans know what we don’t know, but that their policies prohibit chemicals that can be problematic. The US, on the other hand, bans chemicals that have proven problematic. There is still room for debate about which choice is the right one, but now you know the difference.
Banned in Europe, safe in the US | IFLScience
Photo by Rex Boggs .
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