Consumers in the US have filed a lawsuit in California court against Mars over high levels of titanium dioxide (E171) in its Skittles.
 
Titanium dioxide, an additive used in pigments, adhesives and plastics, can cause DNA, brain and organ damage, as well as damage to the liver and kidneys. According to the indictment, European food safety regulators have determined that titanium dioxide is unsafe and plan to ban its use in the EU in August 2022.
 
Mars pledged in 2016 to phase out the use of unsafe titanium dioxide in food. The plaintiffs say that these words were a ruse. In addition, they argue that the list of ingredients on the skittles label is hard to read.