Food coloring, color additive or colorant is any dye, pigment, or substance that imparts color when it is added to food or beverages. Colorants can be supplied as liquids, powders, gels, or pastes. Food coloring is commonly used in commercial products and in domestic cooking.Food colorants are also used in various non-food applications, including cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, home craft projects, and medical devices.
Some colorings may be natural, such as with carotenoids and anthocyanins extracted from plants or cochineal from insects, or may be synthesized, such as tartrazine yellow.In the manufacturing of foods, beverages and cosmetics, the safety of colorants is under constant scientific review and certification by national regulatory agencies, such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and by international reviewers, such as the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. Apr 22, 2025 ·The Food and Drug Administration is phasing out the use of artificial dyes by the end of next year. The policy change will hitfoodand drink companies like PepsiCo, General Mills and WK Kellogg.
Apr 23, 2025 ·Arefooddyesgettingbannedin the US and why? What know to about 8 dyes being phased out. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr announced plans to remove certain artificial dyes from the...
Feb 21, 2026 ·More than 25 states are considering newbanson syntheticfooddyesand other food chemical additives. Among naturally derived dyes are beet juice, beet powder, algae and butterfly pea... Mar 29, 2025 ·West Virginia is the latest state tobansome artificialfooddyesfrom food and drugs.
Here’s what else is happening across the US, and what you can do for now. Apr 24, 2025 ·The FDA just announced a major change that will affect food manufacturers across the country: six widely used synthetic food dyes are set to be banned by the end of2026. Dec 1, 2025 ·In the final weeks of the Biden administration, the FDA moved tobanRed 3 fromfoodand drugs.
West Virginia has adopted the strictestbanon seven syntheticfooddyes, and California hasbannedsix. Most artificiallycolouredfoodsare made with synthetic petroleum-based chemicals, according to nutrition nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Of note: “certified”foodcoloringsare similar to a GRAS designation, but aren’t exactly the same from an FDA regulatory perspective.
FDAbanningartificialfoodcoloring. The backstory.Background information on artificialfoodcoloringwas taken from previous FOX Television Station reportings.