Call for ban on food colours
The uk food watchdog, the Food Standards Agency, has called for a voluntary ban on six artificial colours from food and drink by 2009 saying that the additives have possible side effects on children's behaviour. It also advised the government to push for a European Union-wide ban.
In the light of recent studies, the agency said that certain artificial colours are used only to give colour to food and hence it makes sense to remove them from food and drink. The six colouring additives concerned are: sunset yellow (found in squashes), quinoline yellow, allura red and ponceau 4R (synthetic dyes found in sweets, drinks), carmoisine (used to colour jellies) and tartrazine (in biscuits, fizzy drinks). It has also urged to ban the preservative sodium benzoate (used in soft drinks) linking it to hyperactivity in children.