Nestle says it will remove artificial dyes by mid-2026
(NewsNation) — Nestle is the latest food giant to say it's removing synthetic colors from its U.S. products.
The company's U.S. division announced this week that it plans to complete the phaseout by mid-2026, noting that 90% of its current portfolio does not include synthetic colors.
The move comes amid mounting pressure from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who wants to purge synthetic dyes from the nation's food supply over health concerns.
Some studies have linked the dyes to behavioral health issues in children and places like Australia, Canada and the European Union generally have tighter restrictions on their use.
Last week, Kraft Heinz and General Mills said that they would remove artificial dyes from their U.S. products by the end of 2027.
But it remains to be seen whether the companies will follow through on their commitments.
Back in 2015, Nestle USA pledged to remove artificial flavors and FDA-certified colors from all of its chocolate candy products by year's end. NewsNation reached out to Nestle to ask if the company followed through, but did not receive a response.
While synthetic dyes have faced increased scrutiny recently, studies show they remain common in American grocery products.
An analysis of 40,000 grocery items published this week found nearly 1 in 5 packaged foods and drinks in the U.S. contain synthetic dyes.
A co-author of the study, Thomas Galligan, isn't convinced companies will stick to their promises.
"The FDA recently asked the food industry to voluntarily phase synthetic dyes out of the food supply, but many companies had previously made promises to stop using them and then failed to keep those promises," Galligan, principal scientist for food additives and supplements at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said in a statement.
Galligan said that if the FDA were to require warning labels on foods containing synthetic dyes — similar to the European Union — it would give companies a much stronger incentive to reformulate.
Several states have taken matters into their own hands — including California, West Virginia and Texas — all of which have passed laws related to synthetic dyes.
Polling suggests Americans broadly support the push.
About two-thirds of respondents in an AP-NORC poll earlier this year favored restricting or reformulating processed foods to remove ingredients like added sugar or dyes.
In January, shortly before President Donald Trump took office, U.S. regulators banned the dye known as Red 3 from the nation’s food supply — a decision that came nearly 35 years after it was banned from cosmetics because of potential cancer risk.