France bans the controversial additive E171 in food. According to the Paris Ministry of the Environment and Economy, the ban should come into force on 1 January 2020. The government sees in the dye a risk to health.
E171 is used in sweets and desserts, but also in mozzarella cheese, cosmetics, toothpaste or pharmaceuticals. The dye is used according to the manufacturers, to make food look shiny and fresher. It consists of so-called nanoparticles, ie tiny particles. As a whitening agent, titanium dioxide is also used extensively in paints and coatings.
Researchers have observed in animal experiments that the nanoparticles promote inflammation. They suspect that this could also promote cancer. French scientists reported in about 2017 after experiments with rats that a regular oral intake of titanium dioxide harms the immune system and increases inflammatory bowel inflammation.
The problem: The results of animal experiments can not be easily transferred to humans. For this reason further investigations are necessary.
Chemistry lobby against warning
For example, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) concluded in 2016 that the intake of titanium dioxide (E 171) in food would mean that there are no indications of consumer health concerns based on the data available to date.
Authorities assessed inhalation of the substance by inhalation, such as spraying cream or spray paint. Here, the scientific findings meet the criteria for classification as a suspected cancer substance, reported the Committee for Risk Assessment of the European Chemicals Agency Echa 2017.
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On this basis, the EU Commission considered classifying titanium dioxide as a hazardous substance and labeling it with the warning "possibly carcinogenic". The European chemical industry wants to avert this. She raises doubts about scientific studies and records catastrophic scenarios.
If the substance is considered to be potentially carcinogenic, it is feared that all products with a titanium dioxide content of at least one percent would no longer be recyclable and would need to be treated as hazardous waste. The fabric is one of the world's most widespread whiteners.