I was considering ordering some small gold dragees to use as flower centers on a 50th wedding anniversary cake. I noticed that two different companies posted that they were not allowed to ship these to California because of certain regulations. I'm just curious to know the reason behind this. I live in GA so I could obtain them but if they are not safe for consumption then I would rather not use them. Any help or comments would be appreciated.
Elaine

I LOVE DRAGEES!!!!! I have loved them since I was a kid. They were the first thing I ate off the Christmas cookie.

The reason they are banned in CA is because some hoity-toity lawyer decided that he thought the level of metal was too high and he'd make this high profile case to help pave his way into public office.

Technically, its bad to ingest large quantities of metal, but to get to toxic levels, you'd have to eat A LOT of these things. They are basically jawbreakers coated with silver or gold leaf.

I always tell my customers that the FDA says they are for decoration only, they give me a confused look and tell me that they've always eaten them. I usually just smile and say " (using air quotes) The FDA says they are for decoration only".

If you want to use the gold or silver, just put it in your contract and let the customer know that they are for "decoration" only.

If you don't want to use them because you don't like the idea, maybe you could use the pearl dragees. They are beautiful and edible!

Actually, I was under the impression that in California it was an environmental law...they need to be disposed of properly, and when you ingest them they can't be disposed of properly, if you catch my drift.

I used to have them shipped to my aunt in Maine, who would then ship to me, but now if they see my billing address on my credit card, they won't even process the order.