Kennedy plans to phase out 8 commonly used food dyes

In his first attempt to significantly change the nation’s food supply, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, will direct food manufacturers to phase out eight petroleum-based food dyes that are found in hundreds of thousands of grocery-store staples, the Department of Health and Human Services said Monday.

The plan, expected to be described in detail at an event in Washington on Tuesday, targets dyes used in cereals, sports drinks and a host of other foods. The department has not outlined a regulatory path to enforce the changes, but wants them to be made by the end of 2026.

Health advocates have long criticized food dyes, citing a limited body of research connecting them to hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral problems in children. The Food and Drug Administration, which regulates about 80% of the nation’s food supply, banned Red Dye No. 3 shortly before President Donald Trump took office, after studies connected it to cancer in laboratory animals. That followed a 2023 California law that banned the dye.

The eight dyes Kennedy wants to phase out are widely used within the United States, but products made for the European markets — where companies are required to use warning labels if they add them — and Canadian markets already use natural color substitutes. The secretary is expected to announce the approval of additional natural dyes at Tuesday’s event.

Kennedy, long a champion of removing certain chemicals from the food supply, made food dyes an issue as soon as he was selected to head the health department, pointing out that in Canada, Froot Loops gets its bright colors from blueberries and carrots instead of the Red No. 40, Yellow No. 5 and Blue No. 1 in the American version.

The changes would have a sweeping impact on major food companies such as General Mills, the Kraft Heinz Co. and PepsiCo, which have argued that there hasn’t been enough science connecting ingredients with health outcomes.

Martin Makary, the FDA commissioner, said in an exclusive interview Tuesday that the time had come to shift the thinking on what constitutes risk in the food supply and what scientific evidence is required to regulate food ingredients.

“My feeling is, why gamble with the health of our children?” he said. “We have some data points. We have some observational studies. We believe that these artificial food chemicals are implicated. My feeling is, Why not err on the side of safety? Why say, ‘Let’s just take the risk because the vibrance of the colors is so appealing, it’s worth it.’”

The FDA has long maintained that it has reviewed and evaluated the effects of color additives on children’s behavior, and believes that most children have no adverse effects from consuming them.

Changing food regulations can take a long time, requiring public comment, testimony from food manufacturers and scientific examination. Markary described the agency’s move to remove the dyes as a multistep process. The first is asking food companies to remove the dyes voluntarily.

“Quite honestly, they want a national standard,” he said. “I have found they have been more than receptive to have a level playing field.”

On Monday, the International Food Additives Council, a trade group, echoed that. “A unified, federal approach is essential for maintaining a safe and reliable food supply,” it said in an emailed statement. “The F.D.A. is actively working to make changes to increase efficiency in their process. This underscores the importance of post-market reviews and the F.D.A.’s transparency to ensure consumer trust.”

Sarah Gallo, a senior vice president of product policy for the Consumer Brands Association, a lobbying group for the food and beverage industry, has previously cautioned that policies based on ideology and not science could undermine trust in food safety and “cause consumers, particularly those in vulnerable populations, to lose access to safe, nutrient-dense foods.”

Removing food dyes quickly took on momentum in March after a meeting in Washington in which Kennedy warned top executives from PepsiCo, WK Kellogg Co, General Mills and other large companies that eliminating food dyes was a top priority.

Later in the month, West Virginia banned foods containing most artificial food dyes and two preservatives, citing their potential health risks.

Then, on April 6, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that his office had opened an investigation into Kellogg for marketing its products as “healthy,” despite containing petroleum-based artificial food colorings that he claimed had been linked to hyperactivity and other health problems.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, applauded the move. But its president, Dr. Peter G. Lurie, warned in a statement that recent FDA staff cuts ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency and Kennedy could hamper efforts to keep the food supply safe: “It will be harder now for F.D.A. to police other food additives, inspect factories, or perform just about any function than it was four months ago.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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