West Virginia lawmakers say Gov. Morrisey expected to sign food dye ban bill

 Gov. Patrick Morrisey is expected to sign a bill banning dyes and preservatives in food, according to a pair of state lawmakers.

Sen. Jason Barrett, R-Berkeley, who participated in a webinar Tuesday alongside Del. Even Worrell, R-Cabell, that focused on House Bill 2354, said he discussed the legislation with the governor over the weekend.

“I met with the governor Sunday evening for a couple of hours,” Barrett said. “We certainly talked about this issue, and all inductions from him are that he’s going to sign the bill.”

The legislation would ban the preservatives butylated hydroxyanisole and propylparaben, as well as the dyes FD&C Blue No. 1, FD&C Blue No. 2, FD&C Green No. 3, FD&C Red No. 3, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 5 and FD&C Yellow No. 6.

Additionally, the bill would ban the same dyes from being used as an ingredient in meals served by schools or school nutrition programs.

The bill includes an exception for small businesses and bake sales

The ban on dyes in school lunches would go into effect Aug. 1, and the ban on the dyes and preservatives in items sold commercially would go into effect Jan. 1, 2028.

“We have some behavioral issues in our school system today. I’m not going to point them all to the food dyes, but it’s a contributing factor,” said Worrell. “We’re excited about the process for it, and we’re excited for Gov. Morrisey to sign the bill.”

The governor has been very “hands-on” regarding the bill, Barrett said.

“He’s indicated that throughout this process he had some questions and concerns,” Barrett said. “We were able to address some of his concerns, and I’m extremely confident he’ll sign this bill once it gets to his desk.”

Worrell said the legislation was inspired by the “MAHA movement” and “MAHA moms,” a reference to the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda of U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

“Before we even walked into session, we knew we were going to go after some good ideas that were coming from MAHA and the MAHA moms that are out there,” Worrell said.

Barrett said House Bill 2354 would be the first state law passed in the country regulating artificial dyes and preservatives in food. However, it appears as if California passed bills in 2023.

Also, at least 25 other states are working on bills to ban or limit the use of various dyes and preservatives.

“I really expect, and call on legislators across the country, to pass very similar legislation,” Barrett said.

Opponents of the bill have said it will outlaw about 60% of items currently sold in grocery stores.

“To which my counter argument would be: You’re saying that 60% of our food is not good for us. That’s a bigger concern,” Worrell said. “But the response is this: We know these manufacturers know how to make these products without these synthetic food dyes. They’re doing so right now.”

https://www.wvnews.com/business/west-virginia-lawmakers-say-gov-morrisey-expected-to-sign-food-dye-ban-bill/article_99c837c0-0400-11f0-82d7-93aad38074f2.html