Why Arby's Sourdough Bread Is Banned In Europe

Arby's is known for having the meats, but it's the bread that is keeping some of the fast food chain's most popular menu items out of Europe. Currently, this is more of a theoretical issue, as Arby's doesn't have any locations in the E.U., but if the chain ever wants to expand into Europe, it will have to remove some banned ingredients from its bread recipes.

Banned foods or ingredients vary across the world. For example, Skittles was sued in 2022 for its use of titanium oxide in the U.S. version of its product. Mars Inc., owner of Skittles, uses this ingredient to create the rainbow of colors the brand is known for, but the ingredient is actually banned in the U.K. because of its possible dangers to people's long-term health. However, in the United States, the Food and Drug Administration has determined titanium oxide is okay to use in food as long as it does not exceed 1% of the food's weight.

The same is true of a number of other ingredients, including a few used to make some of Arby's most popular menu items. Arby's croissants, sourdough bread, and French toast sticks all contain azodicarbonamide. Meanwhile, the chain's brioche and slider buns contain propylparaben. Both ingredients are banned in Europe.

Azodicarbonamide, as the FDA explains, is commonly used as "a whitening agent in cereal flour and as a dough conditioner in bread baking." During bread making, azodicarbonamide breaks down into other chemicals, but the FDA has determined that humans are not exposed to high levels of these chemicals through eating bread products. So, the amount of azodicarbonamide you'd get in an Arby's bacon, egg, and cheese croissant or sourdough breakfast sandwich is not enough to draw concern from the FDA.

The propylparaben found in the brioche buns and slider buns is often used as a preservative in foods, as well as drugs and cosmetics. Once again, though, the FDA has not taken issue with the use of this additive as long as it doesn't exceed 0.1% in the food item. So, your Buffalo Chicken slider should be fairly safe to eat ... says the U.S. government. The European government is another story.

So, what's so bad about a little dough conditioning or food preserving? Well, although the FDA determined minimal amounts of azodicarbonamide are just fine, Europe has banned the ingredient for over a decade because, when baked, it has been linked to causing cancer in animals at testing labs.

Similarly, some studies have found propylparaben can cause major health concerns like increased risk of cancer, nervous system damage, and hyperactivity. Although European leadership has long recognized the risk factors of these ingredients, some U.S. states are just starting to catch on.

In October of 2023, the state of California officially banned the use of propylparaben in foods (along with other ingredients). This led to a chorus of online complaints from people who thought that the state was banning Skittles. However, implementation of the ban will not begin until 2027 (which gives plenty of time for manufacturers to reformulate their products), so the Skittles in California are safe for now.