Arizona Bill Would Ban Ultraprocessed Foods in Public Schools

A bill has been introduced in Arizona to ban from state public schools any foods that include 11 additives or ingredients. The sponsor says they define ultraprocessed foods.

The Republican-sponsored effort, HB2164, passed the state house’s education committee 10-0, and will be passed on the full house. It bans “ultraprocessed foods,” which the bill defines as those having 11 commonly debated ingredients: potassium bromate, propylparaben, titanium dioxide, brominated vegetable oil, yellow dye 5, yellow dye 6, blue dye 1, blue dye 2, green dye 3, red dye 3 and red dye 40.

The list closely parallels efforts in California, which has banned Red 3, brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate and propylparaben from all food sales in the state on Jan. 1, 2027. Another bill bans six synthetic food dyes – blue 1, blue 2, green 3, red 40, yellow 5 and yellow 6 – from being used in foods in the state’s public schools in 2028. Brominated vegetable oil and Red 3 have since been banned by the FDA.

This is becoming a pivotal year for state efforts to ban ingredients.

The Arizona bill was introduced by Rep. Leo Biasiucci from Lake Havasu City, among others, and has the backing of state schools chief Tom Horne – who said at a news conference products containing the additives comprise just 5% of foods in public schools. Sen. Janae Shamp, a registered nurse who also supports the bill, was quoted on Tucson’s Channel 4 as saying, "Schools shouldn’t be serving ultra-processed, chemically engineered, junk food."

Parents would still be allowed to send their kids to school with food containing the banned ingredients. But third-party vendors would not be able to provide items that contain the additives, nor would schools be allowed to sell or serve them.