Skittles-maker Mars phases out controversial color additive | EUROtoday

Skittles within the US are not being made with titanium dioxide, a color additive that was banned within the European Union in 2022 over doable well being dangers.

Sweets large Mars mentioned it had stopped utilizing the ingredient in its US Skittles portfolio on the finish of final yr.

The transfer follows years of criticism in regards to the presence of titanium dioxide within the sweet and comes as US President Donald Trump’s elevation of Robert F Kennedy Jr to guide the Department of Health and Human Services has pushed considerations about processed meals to the entrance of public well being debates.

Mars had mentioned in 2016 that it will cease utilizing “all artificial colours” in its meals, citing evolving shopper preferences.

The firm didn’t touch upon whether or not customers would discover any distinction after the removing of the ingredient, which can be utilized to make meals shiny or extra brightly colored.

Mars and different companies have disputed claims of well being dangers related to consumption of titanium dioxide, a white pigment that’s utilized in bakery merchandise, sweets, cosmetics and different merchandise reminiscent of paint.

It is allowed in lots of nations, together with the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand.

In the US, a high-profile 2023 effort in California to ban the ingredient was defeated, however efforts in different states proceed to bubble.

The White House’s Make America Healthy Again report printed earlier this month additionally spotlighted titanium dioxide and different meals components as a key concern.

Mars, which additionally makes M&Ms, Snickers and Kind snack bars, didn’t clarify why it had made the choice, which was first reported by Bloomberg.

The firm didn’t reply when requested whether or not the change would apply to Skittles offered exterior the US.

“Our commitment to quality is what has enabled Mars to be enjoyed by consumers for over a century, and nothing is more important than the safety of our products,” a spokesperson mentioned in a press release.

“All our products are safe to enjoy and meet the high standards and applicable regulations set by food safety authorities around the world, and that’s something we will never compromise on.”

Melanie Benesh is vice chairman of presidency affairs on the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington-based activist organisation targeted on chemical substances that has raised considerations about titanium dioxide.

She credited state-level efforts, moderately than federal motion, with placing strain on firms reminiscent of Mars to vary their recipes.

She identified that the EWG had but to obtain a response to the petition it filed in 2023 asking regulators on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban titanium dioxide.

“The FDA has said a lot of things about food additives but we have not seen them take any enforceable actions yet,” she mentioned. “What has unquestionably made a difference is all of the action at the state level.”

Skittles, which have ranked among the many world’s hottest chewy candies, had been invented within the UK.

They have been made within the US since 1981. Mars’ Wrigley division purchased the model in 2009.

In 2022, the corporate confronted a class-action lawsuit over titanium dioxide in Skittles, which was dismissed.