List of Additives Banned Outside US

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List of Additives Banned Outside US

Would it surprise you to learn that many food products sold in the United States contain ingredients that are banned in other countries? 

American companies are using these food additives in their U.S. products and not in products sold in the UK and other European countries. It’s a mystery to me why they don’t just make the same consumable products without the banned substances to sell worldwide. Some of these companies are such big names as McDonald’s, Kellogg’s, Pizza Hut, Pepsi, KFC, General Mills, M&M/Mars, and Kraft.

If you’d like to avoid foods with additives like these, here’s a list of some banned ingredients and the products that contain them, as well tips on how to watch out for them in your diet. Even though the Food and Drug Administration has not banned them in the U.S., consumers can send a message to those companies by refusing to buy such foods. Look for these ingredients in the nutrition information on each product label.

  1. Azodicarbonamide – This chemical helps to bleach flour and is used in breads, frozen dinners, boxed pasta mixes, and packaged baked goods. Such food chains as McDonalds, Burger King, Subway, and KFC are known to have used azodicarbonamide. It is banned in Australia, the U.K. and other European countries over concerns to cause asthma. Scan food ingredients for the additive and avoid brands that use it.
  2. Brominated Vegetable Oil – BVO is used as an emulsifier in sports drinks and citrus-flavored sodas to keep the flavoring from separating and floating to the surface. It has been linked to thyroid problems, autoimmune disease, birth defects, major organ system damage, growth problems, and even hearing loss. PepsiCo recently announced they would stop using it in Gatorade but the ingredient (banned in Europe, India and Japan) is still used in Mountain Dew and other soft drinks.
  3. Potassium bromate – This flour-bulking agent helps strengthen dough to reduce time and cost. It’s found in rolls, wraps, flatbread, bread crumbs, and bagel chips. It is banned in EU, Canada, China and other countries. In California, such products must carry a warning label. The FDA urges bakers to “voluntarily leave it out” but has not banned this additive, even though it has been associated with kidney and nervous system disorders as well as gastrointestinal discomfort.
  4. Blue #1, #2, Yellow #5, #6 – Dyes are used in cake, candy, macaroni and cheese, medicines, sport drinks, soda, pet food, and cheese. Food manufacturers feel that the foods are more appealing when they are colored with chemical agents than when they are left in their natural colors. But studies have linked these dyes to allergies and impaired cognitive function in hyperactive children. Coloring agents are not essential ingredients. A good way to avoid these harmful additives is by removing any artificially colored food from your diet.
  5. Synthetic hormones (rBGH and rBST) – These are found in milk and dairy products like yogurt from dairy cows that have been injected with growth hormones to boost milk production. Since 1994, every industrialized country in the world, except for the US, has banned the drugs. In the US look for milk labels that specifically advertise absence of the hormone additive or better yet buy organic dairy products.
  6. Arsenic – This cancer-causing toxin is found in poultry, because it’s used in various forms in their feed to promote growth and enhance pigment, making chicken and turkey more pink in color to look more fresh. Gradually these substances are being voluntary removed from use (with Roxarsone being the latest addition) but nevertheless they stay approved for use by FDA so the danger is not quite eliminated yet. Buy pasture-raised organic poultry that are fed a traditional diet without additives to remove the chances of being exposed to arsenic.
  7. Olestra (Olean) – Proctor and Gamble spent 25 years and $500,000 creating a “light” potato chip containing fat substitute Olestra. It however produced unpleasant side effects, and was depleted of fat-soluble vitamins. A 2011 Purdue University study showed that eating too many of these chips (banned in EU and Canada) produced more weight gain than the regular full-fat chips. As of 2013 the following products are known to contains Olesta: Pringles, Ruffles, Doritos, Tostitos and Lay’s. It is relatively easy to eliminate this undesirable additive if you avoid these brands.
  8. BHA and BHT – These waxy solids are used as preservatives in cereal, nut mixes, gum, butter, meat, dehydrated potatoes, and beer. The substance is banned in other countries and is banned from use in baby food in the US. California recognizes BHA as a human carcinogen. It is hard to avoid BHA though since its use is very widespread. The only practical suggestion I see is examining the ingredients for BHT, BHA, or E320 (alternative name for BHA) and stick with the products that don’t have them.


The presence of these additives and the health risks they present give us a strong reason to avoid processed foods. 

I highly recommend reading Read Rich Food, Poor Foodby Mira and Jayson Calton, Ph.D. if this subject is of interest to you. The book culminates their 6-year, 100 countries and 7 continents study and the part you may want to read is called “Villainous Variables”, it is the last chapter of Part I.

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