The fluorescent red of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, the brilliant teal of Mountain Dew Baja Blast and the colorful rainbow of Skittles may soon be dimmed.
The Food and Drug Administration is phasing out the use of petroleum-based synthetic dyes by the end of next year, the agency announced on Tuesday.
“For the last 50 years, American children have increasingly been living in a toxic soup of synthetic chemicals,” FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said at a press conference.
Food and beverage companies use additives like red dye 40 to give cereal, chips, sports drinks and other products bright hues that attract shoppers. But backlash against artificial colorants has been brewing in the U.S. for more than a decade.
The changes will affect a slew of food giants, including PepsiCo, General Mills, Mars and WK Kellogg. The industry has argued that the claims about the dangers of artificial dyes lack evidence that would support any bans.
As of Tuesday, the FDA and the food industry don’t have a formal agreement to remove artificial dyes but instead “an understanding,” according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It is unclear what enforcement actions the agency would take if food and beverage companies do not comply.
“There are a number of tools at our disposal,” Makary said. “I believe in love, let’s start in a friendly way and see if we can do this without any statutory or regulatory changes, but we are exploring every tool in the toolbox to make sure this gets done very quickly. And they want to do it — so why go down a complicated road with Congress?”
The FDA is taking several actions, including setting a “national standard” and timeline for the food industry to transition from petroleum-based food dyes to natural alternatives, according to Makary. The agency is also initiating a process to revoke authorization of synthetic food colorings, including those not in production, within the coming weeks.
He added that the FDA is also eliminating the remaining six synthetic dyes on the market from the U.S. food supply by the end of the year, specifically red dye 40, yellow dye 5, yellow dye 6, blue dye 1, blue dye 2 and green dye 2. It is also requesting food companies to phase out red dye 3 by the end of next year, which is sooner than the 2027 to 2028 deadline previously announced, according to Makary.
“For companies that are currently using petroleum based red dye, try watermelon juice or beet juice. For companies currently combining petroleum-based yellow chemical and red dyes together, try carrot juice,” he said.