Laws
US food additives and the rules in other countries
Lists of "American foods banned in Europe" circulate widely. The official texts tell a narrower story: some of these additives carry a warning abroad, some are not allowed, and some are allowed in both places.
Check an ingredient list against federal and state rules
Tracked dyes and additives found
6 found
Red 40 (E129): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as RED 40. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
Yellow 5 (E102): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as YELLOW 5. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
Blue 1 (E133): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as BLUE 1. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
Propylparaben (E216): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as PROPYLPARABEN. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
Titanium dioxide (E171): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as TITANIUM DIOXIDE. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
BHA (E320): Banned in school food in Texas
Read as BHA. FDA: Allowed by FDA.
SB 314 (89th Legislature, 2025), school food: In effectSB 25 (89th Legislature, 2025), package label: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies
A list can say "artificial color" or "color added" without naming the dye: only the label's own words are read. Legal status only, not health advice.
Most of the dyes that US states are now limiting are not banned in the European Union or the United Kingdom. Red 40 (E129), Yellow 5 (E102) and Yellow 6 (E110) are authorized there, but a food that contains any of them, or three other colors not used in the US, must carry the statement "May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children". The UK government's guidance lists those six colors, which followed research funded by the Food Standards Agency. Titanium dioxide is a different case: on May 6, 2021, the European Food Safety Authority concluded that it "can no longer be considered safe as a food additive". For several other substances, such as potassium bromate, propylparaben or brominated vegetable oil, the EU status is widely reported as not authorized, but we could not open the EU regulation's annex to confirm it on November 1, 2026, so it is shown as not confirmed. Texas used these foreign rules as the basis for its warning label.
Does the Texas warning apply to this label?
Texas SB 25 warning statement
Required by the law
| Label date entered | March 1, 2027 |
| Law covers labels from | January 1, 2027 |
| Status today: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies | |
| Ingredients named | 12 |
A federal court barred the Attorney General from enforcing the warning requirement against the four plaintiff trade associations (American Beverage Association, Consumer Brands Association, National Confectioners Association, FMI) and their members, on First Amendment grounds.
Laws and FDA orders read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Each tracked substance, US and EU
| Substance | United States (FDA) | European Union |
|---|---|---|
| Red 40 | Allowed by FDA | allowed as E129, warning required |
| Red 3 | FDA ban ordered, not yet in effect | not confirmed |
| Yellow 5 | Allowed by FDA | allowed as E102, warning required |
| Yellow 6 | Allowed by FDA | allowed as E110, warning required |
| Blue 1 | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
| Blue 2 | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
| Green 3 | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
| Citrus Red 2 | Still allowed; FDA proposed a ban | not confirmed |
| BVO | Banned nationwide by FDA | not confirmed |
| Potassium bromate | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
| Propylparaben | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
| Titanium dioxide | Allowed by FDA | EFSA, 2021: "no longer considered safe"; EU decision not confirmed |
| BHA | Allowed by FDA | not confirmed |
The six colors with a warning
The EU and UK warning applies to sunset yellow FCF (E110), quinoline yellow (E104), carmoisine (E122), allura red (E129), tartrazine (E102) and ponceau 4R (E124). Three of them are the US dyes Yellow 6, Red 40 and Yellow 5. The other three are not listed for food in the United States at all, which is the reverse of the usual story: those colors are allowed in Europe with a warning and not allowed in US food.
Titanium dioxide
EFSA's 2021 opinion is the clearest case of a European authority reaching a different conclusion from the FDA on an additive that remains listed in the US. EFSA said it could not exclude a genotoxicity concern and therefore could not set a safe daily intake, and that any decision on authorization belonged to the European Commission and member states. In the US, titanium dioxide remains listed at 21 CFR 73.575, and Arizona and Texas name it in their school rules.
Does the Texas warning apply to this label?
Texas SB 25 warning statement
Required by the law
| Label date entered | March 1, 2027 |
| Law covers labels from | January 1, 2027 |
| Status today: Enacted, a court order bars enforcement against some companies | |
| Ingredients named | 12 |
A federal court barred the Attorney General from enforcing the warning requirement against the four plaintiff trade associations (American Beverage Association, Consumer Brands Association, National Confectioners Association, FMI) and their members, on First Amendment grounds.
How Texas used foreign rules
The Texas warning text says the 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". The legislature drew up its own list of 44 ingredients; it is not a copy of any foreign list, and some ingredients on it are allowed in the EU. The Texas page gives the dates and the court order.
Why we do not say "banned in Europe"
A claim that a US food is banned elsewhere usually compresses three different things: an additive not authorized, an additive authorized with a warning, and an additive authorized in other foods or at other levels. We only report what we could read in the official texts, and we mark the rest as not confirmed rather than repeat secondary lists.