The Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., will move to eliminate the eight remaining artificial food dyes of the United States food supply in two years, his department announced on Monday, a significant escalation in his fight to eliminate the country’s additive food that studies suggest that it could be detrimental.
Kennedy and the Commissioner of the Food and Medicines Administration, Marty Makary, will offer details on Tuesday afternoon in Washington, DC
The Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., observes during a press conference on April 7, 2025 at Salt Lake City.
Melissa Majchrzak/AP
Tuesday’s announcement will be directed to artificial dyes used in cereals, ice cream, snacks, yogurts and more.
The administration of former President Joe Biden in January began the process to ban an artificial dye, Red No. 3, which must be eliminated from food in January 2027 and medicines by 2028 because it was shown that it causes cancer in rats.
Kennedy will now seek to eliminate the other eight oil -based dyes approved by the FDA.
The secretary is expected to announce the approval of additional natural dyes, a person familiar with the plans told ABC News.
It is not yet clear what application mechanism, Kennedy will seek to implement the new changes.
Kennedy’s two -year schedule is expected to announce after telling the leaders of the food industry at a meeting last month that wanted their companies to eliminate the artificial dyes of their products at the end of their four -year mandate, according to a note that describes the meeting, which was obtained by ABC News.
Kennedy’s announcement on Tuesday would accelerate that process, and alert the companies that Kennedy intends to fulfill their warning quickly.
From sweets to breakfast cereal and synthetic food dyes are in a wide range of products consumed by Americans. Studies suggest that their vibrant color makes food more attractive and could even increase appetite.
The effects on the health of dyes are not completely understood, but many other countries have prohibited additives directly or required for food packaging labels on health risks.
All dyes have the potential to cause allergic reactions for a small minority. Several dyes have been related to hyperactivity and behavioral problems in children or it has been shown that they cause cancer in mice or rats, but none has shown that none causes cancer in humans.
The red and blue states have already taken matters in their own hands to eliminate artificial food dyes from certain foods. Both West Virginia and California have approved laws to ban a handful of food dyes from school lunches, with plans to extend the ban at a broader state level.
In Western Virginia, the prohibition of artificial dyes in school lunch will enter into force in August, so it is the first state in the country to implement such restrictions. In California, it will enter into force in 2028.
Other twenty -six states, from Iowa to Washington and from Texas to Vermont, are considering similar legislation around the prohibition of food dyes or other chemical additives in food, according to a list compiled by the environmental work group, a defense organization that focuses on chemicals and toxins.
The Environmental Health Dangers Evaluation Office within the California Environmental Protection Agency in 2021 concluded a two -year study in seven synthetic food dyes that found associations with certain neurochonductual results in some children.
The researchers also found that the current level of the FDA of “acceptable daily intake” for dyes can be too high to protect children from potential behavioral impact, according to the report.
