Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday Use is prohibited. More than three decades after Red Dye No. 3, an artificial dye in food, beverages and medicine, was first found to cause cancer in male laboratory rats.
The dye, a petroleum-based additive, is used to give candy, soda and other products their vibrant cherry-red color. Consumer advocates said the FDA’s decision to revoke the permit was long overdue, given the agency’s decision in 1990 to ban the chemical for use in cosmetics and topical medications.
Under federal law, the FDA is prohibited from approving foods that cause cancer in humans or animals.
“This is wonderful news and long overdue,” said Melanie Bensch, vice president of government affairs for the Environmental Working Group, one of several organizations that petitioned the agency to act on the addition. “Red Dye 3 is the lowest of the low-hanging fruit when it comes to toxic food dyes that the FDA should be paying attention to.”
Beginning in 2027, companies must begin removing the color from their products. Imported foods sold in the United States must also have the excess removed.
Although the dye is still used in hundreds of products, many companies are switching to other food dyes, a move that has since gained momentum. California became the first state in 2023. Banning Red 3 along with three other food additives linked to the disease. The color has also been linked to health concerns for children.
In announcing the ban, the agency downplayed the risks to humans, saying researchers found no such cancer risks in studies involving animals other than male rats. The FDA’s deputy commissioner for human food, Jim Jones, said in a statement that the claim that the use of Red Dye No. 3 “in food and ingestible drugs endangers people is not supported by available scientific information.”
Food and beverage companies will comply with the agency’s decision, said Sarah Gallo, senior vice president of product policy and federal affairs for the Consumer Brands Association, a trade group. “Revoking the authorized use of Red No. 3 is an example of FDA using its risk- and science-based authority to evaluate the safety of products on the market,” he said.
First approved for use in food in 1907, Red Dye No. 3 was banned in cosmetics by US regulators in 1990. At this time, FDA cited A study conducted by industry found that the chemical caused thyroid cancer in male rats, but it was estimated that Can cause cancer In less than one in 100,000 people. Agency as well as ban on dyes in cosmetics Committed to doing so with food.
It is already banned for food use in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, with one notable exception: maraschino cherries.
Although many food manufacturers are adopting natural food colorings, including beetroot, red cabbage and insect extracts, Red Dye No. 3 is still found in a number of consumer products, e.g. Candy corn, Yellow rice, Mashed potatoes And Infant nutrition. Consumers can find out if a product contains dyes from the US Department of Agriculture. Branded Food Database And Made another one by the Environmental Working Group.
Artificial colors and foods He has been a prime target for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick for health secretary whose confirmation hearing before the Senate is set to begin soon.
Even health and consumer advocates praised the agency’s decision to ban Red Dye No. 3, saying the decades-long delay highlighted systemic flaws in federal oversight of food additives.
Thomas Gilligan, Principal Scientist of Food Additives and Supplements Center for Science in the Public Interestsaid the agency’s failure to act quickly was partly the result of industry opposition to the ban, but also reflected chronic underfunding of food safety at the FDA.
“FDA has a track record of keeping unsafe chemicals in our food supply long after evidence of harm has emerged,” he said. “And that’s because the agency lacks a robust system for reevaluating the safety of previously approved chemicals.”
“A large part of the blame also falls on Congress for failing to give the FDA the authority and resources it needs to do its job to protect public health,” he added.
According to the organization, more than 200,000 pounds of Red 3 were used in food and drug products in 2021. The center advises consumers to avoid all numbered colors, including yellow 5 and red 40, both of which are made from petroleum.
The FDA has acknowledged weaknesses in its oversight efforts. Last year, the agency Reorganization announced. Its human nutrition programs to more robustly address safety and health challenges in food and agriculture.
Brian Ronholm, Director of Food Policy Consumer Reportswho submitted a petition to the FDA last year calling for a ban on Red Dye No. 3, said there are still many other chemical food additives in the nation’s food supply.
“Many artificial food colors are permitted in food but have not been evaluated for safety by the FDA in decades despite recent studies that have linked the chemicals to serious health problems,” he said. It is,” he said. “It’s time for the FDA to catch up with the latest science and get these harmful chemicals out of our food.”