CODE RED: Watching what children consume
| Photo Credit:
BRIAN SNYDER
The US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) have announced a series of new measures to phase out petroleum-based synthetic dyes from that country’s food supply — a significant milestone in the administration’s broader initiative to “Make America Healthy Again”.
The actions include establishing a national standard and timeline for the food industry to transition from petrochemical-based dyes to natural alternatives; initiating the process to revoke authorisationfor two synthetic food colourings — Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B — in the coming months; working with industry to eliminate six remaining synthetic dyesfrom the food supply by the end of next year; authorising four new natural colour additives; partnering with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct comprehensive research on how food additives impact children’s health and development, among other issues.
“For too long, some food producers have been feeding Americans petroleum-based chemicals without their knowledge or consent,” said HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. “These poisonous compounds offer no nutritional benefit and pose real, measurable dangers to our children’s health and development.”
The FDA is fast-tracking the review of calcium phosphate, Galdieria extract blue, gardenia blue, butterfly pea flower extract, and other natural alternatives to synthetic food dyes.
“The FDA is asking food companies to substitute petrochemical dyes with natural ingredients for American children as they already do in Europe and Canada,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary. “We have a new epidemic of childhood diabetes, obesity, depression, and ADHD. Given the growing concerns of doctors and parents about the potential role of petroleum-based food dyes, we should not be taking risks and do everything possible to safeguard the health of our children.”
Source: USFDA
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Published on May 4, 2025
