Food Chemical Bans · Virginia
Virginia School Food Dye Ban
SB 1289 / HB 1910 - enacted in Virginia.
- Status
- Enacted
- Enacted
- 2025
- States with food chemical bans laws
- 8
- Virginia tracker score
- 59/100 Top quartile
The bottom line
Virginia School Food Dye Ban is an enacted law in Virginia, part of a still-emerging food chemical bans landscape.
- Enacted
- effective 2027-07-01
- 8
- states have food chemical bans laws
- 8/11
- food chemical bans laws enacted nationally
- 59/100
- Virginia tracker score
Data compiled 2026-03-18 from the official Virginia legislative record linked below; laws can be amended or repealed after this date.
Category status mix · regulations
How 11 tracked food chemical bans records split by status
Exclusive enacted vs pending counts in this category (sum to the category total). Orthogonal to the peer scatter below, which plots state-level enacted volume against portal tracker score.
Regulatory Snapshot: Virginia School Food Dye Ban
Virginia School Food Dye Ban (SB 1289 / HB 1910) is an enacted law in Virginia under the Food Chemical Bans category. It was enacted on 2025-03-20 and becomes effective on 2027-07-01. Virginia currently has 4 regulations tracked here, with 4 records marked enacted in this dataset. PlainRegWatch's tracker score is 59/100; it summarizes coverage within the five categories this site tracks and is not an official state rating. PlainRegWatch compiled this entry's data on 2026-03-18; consult the linked official source for the current, authoritative text.
Nationally, 8 food chemical bans statutes have been enacted and 3 additional bills remain pending - 8 distinct jurisdictions have codified rules in this area so far. That places Virginia within a still-emerging food chemical bans landscape where compliance programs typically hinge on definitions in SB 1289 / HB 1910 itself.
Applicability under Virginia School Food Dye Ban: Public schools in Virginia. Penalty exposure is documented as: VA Dept of Education enforcement. Notable exemptions: Food from home. Not retail sales..
Summary
Bans seven synthetic dyes from school food.
Key Requirements
- Schools cannot offer food with Blue 1/2, Green 3, Red 3/40, Yellow 5/6.
Penalties
- VA Dept of Education enforcement.
Applicability
- Public schools in Virginia.
Exemptions
- Food from home.
- Not retail sales.
Official Source
https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?251+ful+SB1289ER2Category context
How Virginia sits among food chemical bans peers
8 states have a tracked record in food chemical bans ; Virginia ranks #6 by portal tracker score among those peers. Each point is one state with at least one food chemical bans regulation in this archive.
Read the peer-state figures
- California: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 100/100.
- Texas: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 69/100.
- Illinois: 0 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 62/100.
- New York: 0 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 62/100.
- Delaware: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 59/100.
- Virginia (this state): 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 59/100.
- Utah: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 55/100.
- Tennessee: 0 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 31/100.
- Arizona: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 28/100.
- Louisiana: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 28/100.
- West Virginia: 1 enacted of 1 tracked food chemical bans record, tracker score 28/100.
Dashed lines mark the peer averages in this category. The tracker score summarizes enacted records across all five policy areas PlainRegWatch tracks; it is not enforcement strength or legal burden. Read how tracker scores are computed.
Tracker-score ranking on food chemical bans
Top peer states by portal tracker score among jurisdictions with a food chemical bans record in this archive.
| # | State | Tracker score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 100 |
| 2 | Texas | 69 |
| 3 | Illinois | 62 |
| 4 | New York | 62 |
| 5 | Delaware | 59 |
| 6 | Virginia (this state) | 59 |
| 7 | Utah | 55 |
| 8 | Tennessee | 31 |
| 9 | Arizona | 28 |
| 10 | Louisiana | 28 |
Read with Virginia School Food Dye Ban
Nearest food chemical bans volume peers and same-state archive siblings for this ENACTED · SLIM row.
ENACTED SLIM
Delaware · 1 enacted
Delaware holds 1 enacted food chemical bans rows (more by 0 than Virginia); tracker 59/100.
Utah · 1 enacted
Utah holds 1 enacted food chemical bans rows (more by 0 than Virginia); tracker 55/100.
Texas · 1 enacted
Texas holds 1 enacted food chemical bans rows (more by 0 than Virginia); tracker 69/100.
Arizona · 1 enacted
Arizona holds 1 enacted food chemical bans rows (more by 0 than Virginia); tracker 28/100.
Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act · ENACTED
Another Virginia archive row (Data Privacy) stamped ENACTED beside ENACTED Virginia School Food Dye Ban.
Virginia Minimum Wage Act · ENACTED
Another Virginia archive row (Employment & Worker Protection) stamped ENACTED beside ENACTED Virginia School Food Dye Ban.
Disclaimer: This summary is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Regulation details may have changed since this data was compiled (2026-03-18). Always consult official sources and qualified legal counsel for compliance guidance.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Verify with the official Virginia source →
Every figure on PlainRegWatch is rendered from curated state legislative and Federal Register source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Status, dates, and source URL are this record's row in the curated archive, not a live legislature scrape. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026. Tracker scores and rule counts are curated records in five tracked categories - not enforcement strength, legal advice, a complete inventory of US law, or a live bill-status feed.