The FDA Officially Banned Red Dye No. 3 From Use in Food, Beverages, and Medicin…

It’s official: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned Red Dye No. 3 in food, beverages, and ingested drugs in the U.S.

The Washington Post reported that Red dye No. 3 must be removed from food products by mid-January 2027 and from ingested drugs in 2028. The FDA noted on its website that it used the Delaney Clause, which prohibits additives found to cause cancer in humans, as the basis for the ban.

“The Delaney Clause is clear; the FDA cannot authorize a food additive or color additive if it has been found to cause cancer in humans or animals,” Jim Jones, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for human foods, said in a statement shared with reporters. 

As for what, exactly, it will be removed from, the FDA noted that Red No. 3 has been “primarily used in certain food products, such as candy, cakes and cupcakes, cookies, frozen desserts, and frostings and icings,” meaning your store-bought candy will likely come in a little bit of a different hue in a few years. 

In 2022, Consumer Reports signed a petition led by the Center for Science in the Public Interest calling for a ban of Red Dye 3, and in October of 2024, Consumer Reports also delivered a petition signed by more than 80,000 consumers asking the FDA for the ban. Now, the organization says it’s “applauding” the FDA’s decision. 

“Red Dye 3 poses an unacceptable risk to our health, especially when safer alternatives are readily available,” Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, shared in a statement provided to Food & Wine. “By banning Red Dye 3, the FDA will protect the public by encouraging manufacturers to switch to safer ingredients already used in products sold in Europe and numerous other countries.”

However, the organization added that it will continue to press the FDA to ban other synthetic food dyes linked to neurobehavioral problems. It pointed to a 2021 study by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, which found that many food dyes and colorants — including the six dyes now banned under the California School Food Safety Act — could make children more vulnerable to behavioral difficulties.
 
“Many synthetic food dyes are allowed in food but haven’t been reviewed for safety by the FDA in decades despite recent studies that have linked the chemicals to serious health problems,” Ronholm added. “It’s time for the FDA to catch up with the latest science and get these harmful chemicals out of our food.”