H-3359.1

HOUSE BILL 2351


State of Washington	64th Legislature	2016 Regular Session

By Representatives Stanford, Ryu, Peterson, Hudgins, and Jinkins

Prefiled 01/05/16. Read first time 01/11/16. Referred to Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources.

AN ACT Relating to providing consumer notice regarding cinnamon sources that naturally contain high levels of coumarin; adding a new section to chapter 69.04 RCW; and creating a new section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that coumarin is a toxicant that has been generally banned for use as a food additive by the United States department of agriculture since 1954 due to its propensity to cause liver damage in sensitive populations. Although banned as an intentional additive for most foods, coumarin is still present in the American food supply as a naturally occurring component of some common food flavorings.

(2) The legislature further finds that the product commonly marketed as cinnamon may, in actuality, be a derivative of a variety of different plants in the Cinnamomum genus, each naturally developing different coumarin profiles. Ceylon cinnamon, also known as true cinnamon, is one such source plant that happens to naturally produce low levels of coumarin. However, most cinnamon in commerce today derives from other related species that, as a group, are referred to as cassia cinnamon. The dried bark from these species contain substantial amounts of naturally occurring coumarin and could pose a risk to a member of a sensitive population.

(3) The legislature further finds that it is in the public's interest to allow cinnamon consumers to easily identify whether cinnamon being offered for sale is derived from Ceylon cinnamon or cassia cinnamon so that an informed purchasing decision can be made regarding coumarin levels.

(1) Any package labeled as whole cinnamon bark or ground cinnamon that is not wholly derived from the dried inner bark of the Ceylon or true cinnamon plant (Cinnamomum verum) must include conspicuous notice to the potential end consumer that the contents of the package contains cassia cinnamon. At a minimum, this notice must include the word "cassia" appearing on the label in the same size and font as largest appearance of the word "cinnamon" on the package.

(2) This section applies to all cinnamon not derived from the plant known as Cinnamomum verum, including cinnamon derived from the plants known as Cinnamomum cassia, Cinnamomum loureiroi, and Cinnamomum burmannii.

(3) This section only applies to cinnamon sold as a stand-alone end product. This section does not apply to other products with cinnamon listed or included among other ingredients.