The TDMA comments on claims associating titanium dioxide in candies with health risks

08 November 2022

The Titanium Dioxide Manufacturers Association (TDMA) welcomes the recent voluntary dismissal of the US lawsuit concerning claims against the safety of titanium dioxide (TiO2) as a food additive in candies, and continues to defend the safety of TiO2 in all its intended applications.

The TDMA disagrees with the claims made regarding TiO2’s safety in candies, which contain a number of inaccurate statements regarding the safety of TiO2 as a food additive. These claims are not in line with the recent reviews from trusted scientific authorities including the UK Food Standard Agency (UK FSA) and Health Canada.

With regards to the safety of TiO­in food, the TDMA would like to emphasise:

  • These claims misrepresent the conclusions of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in its 2021 opinion. EFSA did not conclude that TiOis genotoxic or causes harm to humans. EFSA only concluded that there was uncertainty regarding potential genotoxicity that required further investigation, a conclusion that other global regulators have disagreed with. See full TDMA statement concerning EFSA opinion.
  • TiO2 is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use as a food colourant and the FDA has not identified any safety concerns regarding the use of TiO2 in food.
  • Following EFSA’s 2021 opinion on E171, the safety of TiO2 as a food additive has been further confirmed after critical evaluation by both the UK FSA and Health Canada, the health policy department of the Canadian government. See full TDMA statement about opinions.

The TDMA continues to stand behind the safety of TiO2 in all its intended applications and has called on the European Commission to trigger a critical re-examination of the EFSA 2021 opinion in light of the overwhelming scientific evidence and range of assessments by regulatory authorities confirming the safety of TiO2 as used in food.

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