Utah ban on several school food dyes helped prompt federal action, sponsors say

SALT LAKE CITY — Representative Kristen Chevrier said Utah’s law restricting synthetic food dyes in school-prepared meals and related legislation helped spur national attention and federal action on food additives.

Chevrier described the food dye bill as removing a list of synthetic dyes from school meals; she said there were initially five dyes removed from the bill and that titanium dioxide was discussed and later added to a subsequent bill. "For many, many years, we have known that there are synthetic dyes...and other petroleum based ingredients that are in our food that are very dangerous," she said.

Both guests described industry responses after Utah’s action. Grisha and Chevrier said major retailers and food manufacturers — the hosts named Walmart, Sam’s Club and Heinz on the broadcast — announced plans to remove some dyes and that federal officials later announced a ban on six dyes after meetings in Washington that included Utah legislators and federal leadership.

Chevrier said rural school districts and charter schools were initially exempted because of cost concerns but that subsequent outreach led some districts and charters to request inclusion. "We started the meeting, and they said, well, we really wanna do this," she said of rural districts.

The segment credits Utah’s legislative actions with helping push federal agencies "to the table," but it does not contain federal rule citations or regulatory texts. The broadcast referenced a press event in Washington and Secretary Kennedy’s visits but did not provide exact federal notice or docket numbers.

What’s next: Sponsors said they will continue outreach and Grisha will brief health officials from other states; implementation details for schools and effective dates were not provided on the air.