A California man has sued Mars for allegedly employing a ‘known poison’ to give its snack Skittles its renowned rainbow colours. Attorneys for Jenile Thames, a San Leandro resident, argued that Skittles are unsafe for ‘human ingestion’ because they contain ‘heightened quantities’ of titanium dioxide.
The case, which seeks class-action status, was filed on Thursday in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. According to the lawsuit, despite the confectionery company publicly announcing its intention to stop using titanium dioxide in its goods in 2016, titanium dioxide is still present in things such as Skittles today.
Titanium dioxide is used by Mars Inc. for its well-known rainbow of synthetic colours found in Skittles. According to the complaint, titanium dioxide, which is used in paint, adhesives, plastics, and roofing materials, can affect DNA, the brain, and other organs, as well as cause liver and kidney lesions.
‘Taking into consideration all available scientific research and data, the Panel decided that titanium dioxide can no longer be deemed safe as a food additive,’ said EFSA’s (European Food Safety Authority) expert Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings (FAF) in May.
According to Reuters, the complaint is seeking unspecified monetary damages for fraud and infringement of California consumer protection rules. Mars replied in a statement to TODAY and many other news sources, ‘While we do not comment on current lawsuits, our usage of titanium dioxide conforms with FDA standards.’
Thames, the complainant, stated that he bought Skittles from a neighbouring QuikStop in April and would not have done so if he had known what was inside the candy. He further argued that reading the label would have been ineffective since the ingredients on Skittles’ bright red box are difficult to see.
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