Florida Department of Health finds arsenic in Ferrara candies like Nerds and Laffy Taffy at levels that can exceed a child's yearly safe intake in one box or a few pieces, leading to dismissed disclosure lawsuits
On January 26, 2026, the Florida Department of Health released results under the Healthy Florida First initiative from testing 46 candy products purchased from stores and online. Arsenic was detected in 28 of them. For several Ferrara Candy Company products the state reported concentrations in the hundreds of parts per billion and calculated that a child could reach the state's annual safe-exposure figure by eating one movie-theater box of Nerds, four pieces of banana Laffy Taffy, or similar small amounts of related items such as SweeTarts and Trolli. Comparable figures were listed for certain Hershey products including Jolly Ranchers and Twizzlers. The state framed the findings as information for families about products widely marketed to children and noted that repeated exposure above those benchmarks can raise risks of cancer and neurodevelopmental effects.
Class-action complaints followed within days. Christina Anstett filed Anstett v. Ferrara Candy Company on February 4, 2026, in the Northern District of Illinois, relying on the Florida data and alleging failure to disclose the presence of arsenic. Phanny Chhin filed Chhin v. Ferrara Candy Company on February 6, 2026, in the Northern District of California on similar grounds. Both cases were voluntarily dismissed without prejudice in mid-March 2026; no class was certified, no settlement was reached, and no product recalls were issued by the companies or the FDA.
The National Confectioners Association responded that the Florida results used EPA Method 6010D, a method validated for soil and water rather than food, that the method measures total arsenic without distinguishing the more toxic inorganic form, and that the reported levels are substantially higher than those found in the FDA's Total Diet Study. The association stated that candy remains safe when consumed as a treat and that Florida's annual-piece limits create unnecessary confusion relative to existing federal work under the Closer to Zero initiative.
Parents and caregivers therefore face a gap between a state laboratory report that flags rapid accumulation of arsenic for children and an industry position that the underlying measurements are not reliable for food. No enforceable federal action level currently exists specifically for arsenic in candy, so the practical effect of the testing and the short-lived lawsuits is limited to consumer awareness and voluntary moderation while the methodological dispute remains unresolved.
Sources
Florida Releases Candy Testing Results Under Healthy Florida First Initiative
Official January 26, 2026 press release announcing detection of arsenic in 28 of 46 tested candies and directing the public to the detailed results.
Anstett v. Ferrara Candy Company, 1:26-cv-01304
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72234504/anstett-v-ferrara-candy-company/
Federal docket showing the February 4, 2026 class-action complaint based on the Florida testing and its March 10, 2026 voluntary dismissal without prejudice.
Chhin v. Ferrara Candy Company, 4:26-cv-01186
https://cand.uscourts.gov/cases-e-filing/cases/426-cv-01186/chhin-v-ferrara-candy-company
Northern District of California docket for the February 6, 2026 related complaint and its mid-March 2026 voluntary dismissal.
NCA Statement On Florida Announcement About Arsenic And Candy
https://candyusa.com/news/nca-statement-on-florida-announcement-about-arsenic-and-candy/
Trade-association response the same day disputing the methodology, the safety benchmarks, and the comparison with FDA data.
How Florida Got Its Arsenic And Candy Report Wrong
https://candyusa.com/news/how-florida-got-its-arsenic-and-candy-report-wrong/
NCA technical follow-up asserting that use of the environmental test method inflated results by factors of 1,200–3,800 percent relative to FDA Total Diet Study findings.