USFDA to 'phase out' eight approved synthetic food dyes by 2027
United States Food and Drug Administration
US President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday announced its plans to ban synthetic dyes from the country's food supply, a move which would see the eight approved
artificial food dyes
being phased out by the end of 2026.
"For the last 50 years, American children have increasingly been living in a toxic soup of synthetic chemicals," Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Marty Makary said at a press conference surrounded by young families.
Makary cited studies linking synthetic dyes to conditions including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, cancer, genomic disruption, gastrointestinal issues and more.
Of the eight synthetic dyes derived from petroleum, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 and Red 40 constitute the lion's share of those in use, according to Peter Lurie, president and executive director of the non-profit Center for Science in the Public Interest.
These are found in a range of products from beverages and candies to cereals, sauces and dairy products.
"None of them convey anything of any nutritional significance, and what they're really there for is to mislead -- to make food appear somehow redder, somehow bluer, somehow fruitier or more attractive than it is. And the purpose of all that is to drive up sales, it's not anything that benefits the American public," Lurie told news agency AFP.
FDA commissioner Makary's announcement on synthetic dyes builds upon a prohibition on Red Dye 3 by the previous Joe Biden administration. However, it accelerates the timeline, and directs the National Institutes of Health to carry out "comprehensive research" on how additives impact kids' development.
US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. has repeatedly vowed to "overhaul" America's food system under the banner of his "Make America Healthy Again" agenda.
However, industry opposition to the announced ban could still emerge. Food manufacturers have historically lobbied against tighter regulations, but Lurie believes resistance may be more muted this time.
"The question that industries are wrestling with now is whether or not to oppose this, and you know, the signs that I see are that they may just suck it up in the end," he stated.
He cited "tepid" statements made when Red 3 was banned and the limited response when Kennedy first warned he would be targeting dyes.
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