Oklahoma lawmakers study pros and cons of eliminating food dyes, additives

State lawmakers are continuing the fight to pass Senate Bill 4, which would ban certain food dyes and substances. In an interim study on Tuesday, experts discussed the health and economic impacts of the dyes.

Details of Senate Bill 4:

SB 4 prohibits any person or entity from manufacturing, selling, brewing, or distributing certain dyes and substances in food products as outlined in the measure, beginning January 15, 2027, for such dyes in food products and beginning January 18, 2028, for such dyes used to reformulate ingestible drugs.

The prohibited dyes and substances are as follows:

1. Blue dye 1
2. Blue dye 2
3. Green dye 3
4. Red dye 3
5. Red dye 40
6. Yellow dye 5
7. Yellow dye 6

Upon the issuance of a revocation of authorization for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the prohibition shall extend to the following substances:

1. Aspartame
2. Azodicarbonamide (ADA)
3. Brominated vegetable oil (BVO)
4. Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)
5. Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT)
6. Ethylene dichloride
7. Methylene chloride
8. Potassium bromate
9. Propyl gallate
10. Propylparaben
11. Sodium benzoate
12. Sodium nitrate
13. Titanium dioxide
14. Trichloroethylene

Interim Study Details:

Senator Kristen Thompson and Representative Tammy West held a joint interim study to hear from different sectors about the pros and cons of eliminating the dyes and preservatives in the legislation.

“This policy is complicated, it is very wide reaching, there are lots of pros and cons to this,” said Sen. Thompson ( R) Edmond.

The topics discussed included:

1. Background and Overview of Food Additives in Oklahoma
2. Public Health Impacts of Harmful Additives
3. Economic Consequences: Workforce and GDP Impact
4. Consumer and Agricultural Perspectives
5. Policy Options and Regulatory Approaches

Potential Health Impacts:

“These are chemicals that are largely unnecessary; some of them have been banned elsewhere or are under some pretty strict restrictions because they are linked to health concerns,” said Thomas Galligan, a toxicologist.

A doctor, along with multiple speakers, brought research and studies that show additives on the list can lead to behavioral issues, including aggression and hyperactivity, mainly in children, along with chronic conditions in adults including heart problems and diabetes.

Behavioral Issues in Children

Brandon Cawood, a Documentarian with To Dye For, said he was noticing behavioral issues in his own child when consuming certain dyes.

“He was biting, hitting, temper tantrums, all things that are typically behaviorally normal around his age, but it was the consistency and the level that they were happening. Nothing that we were doing seemed to be working,” said Cawood.

When Cawood removed the dyes from his son's diet, he began to notice a major behavioral change.

“Removing that eliminated 98% of what was going and all of the sudden, this kid that you could not reason with or talk to, all of the sudden he would listen to you and you could talk to him. he was a kid who had adverse sensitivity to synthetic dyes,” said Cawood.

Economic Impact:

“The economic impact of chronic disease is quite staggering. Oklahoma loses $44.8 billion to chronic illness, this includes $13.2 in direct healthcare costs and $31.6 billion attributed to lost productivity, said Kyla Guyette, Director of the Oklahoma Workforce Commission. “The loss accounts for approximately 18% of the state's gross domestic income. Adults with chronic health conditions who aren't eating properly will raise healthcare costs, children who aren't eating nutritious foods aren't thriving.”

Next steps:

Thompson will take the input from Tuesday's interim study and continue working on Senate Bill 4 for next year. The bill was stalled in the state senate, so it will be eligible to be picked up there in 2026.