Latest news with #Smucker's
New York Post
21 hours ago
- Business
- New York Post
JM Smucker becomes latest food manufacturer to remove artificial colors from popular brands
The J.M. Smucker Co. joined a growing list of food giants that are pledging to eliminate FD&C artificial dyes from its products within the next two years, aligning with the Trump administration's goals of removing artificial colors from the nation's food supply. Smucker's said this commitment, announced Friday, will affect its sugar-free fruit spreads and ice cream toppings as well as certain products from its Hostess brand portfolio. The company also said it's working with its distribution partners to no longer sell products with FD&C colors to K-12 schools by the 2026 – 2027 school year. Smucker's, whose family of brands includes Folgers, Dunkin', Café Bustelo, Jif, Uncrustables, Smucker's and Hostess, said most of its consumer foods are already free of FD&C colors, including a majority of its products currently available to K-12 schools. The company has previously removed high-fructose corn syrup from its Uncrustables sandwiches and introduced fruit spreads featuring ingredients from all natural sources as well as reduced sugar options. 'Our commitment to remove FD&C colors from our sugar-free fruit spreads, ice cream toppings, and sweet baked goods products represents the latest example of our desire to evolve and our ability to continue to innovate to deliver on the expectations of our consumers,' J.M. Smucker CEO Mark Smucker said. The artifical dyes are known as FD&C colors and labeled as such on packages because the color additive is approved by the FDA for use in food, drugs, and cosmetics. 3 The J.M. Smucker Co. is the latest food giant to remove artificial dyes from its products. Bloomberg News They are subject to a strict system of approval under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). Last week, General Mills and Kraft Heinz issued their own commitments to remove all artificial dyes from their respective U.S. portfolios by the end of 2027. PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta said during an April 24 conference call that the company will reduce artificial ingredients and has already begun doing so, while McCormick, which manufactures and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments and other flavoring products, told analysts during its earnings call in March that it has been working with restaurants and foodmakers to reformulate products to remove certain ingredients like food dyes. Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced plans to launch a stronger review process for food chemicals already on the market to ensure the nation's food supply is more transparent and ensure the safety of chemicals in food. 3 Sugar-free fruit spreads and ice cream toppings will be affected, though certain dyes in other products will still be in use, approved by the FDA. AP Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. previously said that 'some food producers have been feeding Americans petroleum-based chemicals without their knowledge or consent' for too long. He also claimed that these 'poisonous compounds offer no nutritional benefit and pose real, measurable dangers to our children's health and development.' Kennedy and the FDA announced in April a series of new measures to phase out all petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the nation's food supply. 3 The company plans to remove the dyes from its products within the next two years. Getty Images Kennedy noted that this effort would need voluntary support from food manufacturers, but that the 'industry has voluntarily agreed' to do so. The FDA has approved seven certified color additives for use in food, six of which were approved by 1931. Now, it's working with the industry to eliminate 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 from the food supply by 2027. The FDA in January revoked the authorization for the use of Red No. 3, also known as erythrosine, in food and ingested drugs over concerns that it has been shown to cause cancer in animals.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
RFK Jr. Wants To Ban Food Dyes. Would That Really Improve Public Health?
In a recent closed-door meeting with the CEOs of several major food companies—including PepsiCo, General Mills, Smucker's, Kraft Heinz, and Kellogg's—Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. implored the industry to eliminate artificial food dyes from their products. The secretary "expressed the strong desire and urgent priority of the administration to remove" artificial coloring from the food supply, said Melissa Hockstad, president and CEO of the Consumer Brands Association, in a readout reported by Food Fix. In 2023, California became the first state in the country to ban Red 3 in foods, along with three other additives. A year later, the Golden State barred another six food dyes from being served in the state's public school lunches. Kennedy and other supporters of these bans cite studies that suggest synthetic dyes can potentially be cancerous. Other reports have linked these additives to hyperactivity in some children. But critics argue these studies don't reflect real-world consumption levels. "The cancer-causing 'links' found in studies are based on dangerously high doses given to lab rats in amounts no human would ever consume, even if they ate a whole box of cereal or pack of hot dogs," says Bill Wirtz, a senior policy analyst at the Consumer Choice Center. "Banning food dyes is a performative regulatory action. All dyes currently used by manufacturers do not pose a known health risk to consumers." Joseph Borzelleca, a pharmacologist and toxicologist at Virginia Commonwealth University, has also argued that the dye does not pose a cancer risk to human beings. That's notable because it was Borzelleca's 1987 study on food dyes and lab rats that prompted the FDA to ban Red 3 in cosmetics. "I have no problem with my family—my kids and grandkids—consuming Red 3. I stand by the conclusions in my paper that this is not a problem for humans," he told KFF Health News. California's Red 3 ban in 2023 created "a complicated map of where food producers can sell their products," says Wirtz. This regulatory patchwork makes it "very difficult for smaller businesses there to reach consumers and survive long term. Larger corporations can afford the compliance costs and employ enough people to reformulate, repackage, and re-organize their supply chains." A national ban would mean there isn't a patchwork anymore—but by moving in the wrong direction. Besides the scientific shakiness of such a regulation, such a rule would override consumer choice and might even give eaters a false sense of security: If Americans come to believe that dye-free foods are inherently healthy, they might consume more processed foods rather than less. "Moderation in all things is still the best message," says Wirtz, "rather than performative regulatory crackdowns." The post RFK Jr. Wants To Ban Food Dyes. Would That Really Improve Public Health? appeared first on
