Food safety advocates expect a smooth transition away from Red No. 3
Because the artificial dye is prohibited in the E.U. and elsewhere, many food and beverage makers already have recipes without it that they can use for U.S consumers.
Food safety advocates cheered the news that U.S. regulators are banning Red No. 3 — and said they don’t anticipate any hiccups in quickly removing the artificial dye from America’s grocery shelves.
Red No. 3 gives thousands of foods, beverages and sweets their cherry-red hue. On Wednesday, following decades of concerns over the additive’s safety, the Food and Drug Administration announced it would ban its use starting in 2027.
Those who petitioned to have Red No. 3 prohibited said there’s no reason why it can’t be taken out of products sooner. It has long been banned in the European Union and some other countries, meaning many companies that sell foods and beverages overseas already have recipes that they can easily swap in for American consumers.
In addition, in 2023, California became the first state to pass a law forbidding Red No. 3 from products sold there. That ban, also set to take effect in 2027, has been expected to have a nationwide effect on manufacturers, which were unlikely to reformulate recipes just for Californians.
“Companies have been on alert over this,” said Dr. Peter Lurie, president and executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer advocacy group that petitioned the FDA in 2022 to end the use of Red No. 3. “They’ve had plenty of time to think through this problem and to come up with alternatives.”
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