24-04-2025
‘It just looks different': Government looking to phase out artificial dyes from U.S. food supply
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says the government will phase out all artificial dyes from the food supply by the end of next year.
The goal is to replace the dyes with natural alternatives.
One grocer in the Ozarks already carries foods that are free from artificial colors.
'The new laws coming down, Mama Jeans already has got that covered here,' said Lucinda Soden, the logistics manager for Mama Jeans Natural Market
Soden says the idea for Mama Jeans came about when the founder realized there was a need for a grocery store where people with food allergies could go and not worry about the labels.
'We're an all-natural market, which means that we have all-natural and organic products,' Soden said.
The announcement came Tuesday, April 22, from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
'Increasingly the public is seeing the value in addressing the toxic soup that their kids are being raised in,' said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary.
The government is working to phase out all petroleum-based synthetic dyes.
'If they wanna add petroleum, they wanna eat petroleum they ought to add it themselves at home,' Kennedy said. 'They shouldn't be feeding it to the rest of us.'
Soden tells Ozarks First this food dye ban will mainly affect kids' foods.
'A lot of the cereals just kind of look, you know, they don't look as exciting, but some of the candies do,' Soden said.
Some of the foods impacted include cereals like Fruit Loops and Trix, and candy like M&Ms and Skittles.
Soden says despite the lack of dyes, their food doesn't taste any different.
'No, absolutely not,' Soden said. 'It just looks different.'
The food dye industry has denied any safety concerns with artificial dyes. The International Association of Color Manufacturers said the dyes help with consistency and consumer trust in food products.
'We have a food addiction problem,' Makary said. 'In fact obesity is a food addiction manifestation. And so the problem is not better willpower. The problem is examining the ingredients for making food so addictive.'
The eight artificial dyes expected to be phased out of U.S. food supply by the end of 2026 are Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B, FD&C Green No. 3, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 5, FD&C Yellow No. 6, FD&C Blue No. 1, and FD&C Blue No. 2.
When asked about the price difference between foods with and without artificial dyes, Soden says it is a sacrifice to buy foods without those dyes but she says she believes it's worth it.
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