RFK JR wants artificial dyes that light up from food. Are Americans ready to let go? |Food and Beverage Industry

tHe makes America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign celebrations after the American dairy industry Voluntary Commitment Remove all artificial dyes from ice cream by 2028. Robert F Kennedy Jr Popular In the food industry, the use of artificial dyes has been stopped, and many of the largest food manufacturers including Nestlé, Kraft Heinz and Pepsi have been Commitment to comply. But the promise of ice cream made Kennedy particularly happy because he said that ice cream was his favorite food.

Prepare to say goodbye to the bright pink (from the No. 40 red dye), which represents the cool green of strawberry, mint chocolate chips (yellow 5 and blue 1), and the hero combination of red 40, blue 1 and yellow 5 and 6 that make up Superman.

one of the Target The Maha exercise is designed to prevent childhood illnesses, which Kennedy believes can be achieved by addressing the use of additives in super-severe foods. one Recent research According to Kennedy, published in the Journal of Nutrition and Diet, 19% of foods contain artificial dyes – the “most creepy” additives in 2020. Those dyes, he Proposeresponsible for many health issues, including cancer, ADHD and possible autism.

“The American people have made it clear – they want real food, not chemicals,” Kennedy said in a statement.

Apart from joking about Donald Trump on social media color Kennedy suspected of using Methylene blue (Some claim artificial dyes improve “mitochondrial efficiency” and lifespan), the initiative has few political oppositions. When Joe Biden was still president in January, the FDA announced prohibit The FDA explained that Red Dye No. 3, scheduled to take effect in 2027. Red 3 was proven to cause cancer in rats, and although it did not appear in enough food to affect humans, it still violated laws prohibiting additives.

Meanwhile, various politically diverse countries have established their own ban or requirement that foods containing artificial dyes bear warning labels on the grounds of protecting children. (In the UK and the EU, limit About artificial dyes have been around for many years. )

Why make a fuss about eating coloring? Are natural dyes really much better for our health?

“They are better for some people’s health,” said Jamie Alan, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University. “There is a small part of children who are very sensitive to these dyes. When they eat these dyes, they show behaviors that we sometimes have with ADHD.”

Alan stressed that there is no evidence that these children actually develop ADHD. But the research has Established Children with certain dyes, including those diagnosed with ADHD or autism, may show signs of ADHD, depression and inattention after eating foods containing certain dyes. However, many of these foods, especially candy and soda, also contain sugar, which are also associated with hyperactivity.

Allen advises parents to talk to their pediatricians and try to eliminate the diet to ensure the dye is not another ingredient. But she largely supports the phase-out of artificial dyes. Most public health advocates believe this is Good idea. “I think because we’re talking about children and because they’re a vulnerable population, I do think it’s a great thing. But I’ll realize that it’s not going to affect the vast majority of the population.”

One group that dye changes will certainly affect is the food manufacturers themselves. Travis Zissu, co-founder and innovation leader, said switching from artificial dyes to natural dyes is a complex process food Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, the program provides a program to help manufacturers perform dye conversion.

Unlike artificial dyes, dyes derived from petroleum, natural dyes are mainly derived from plants: for example, turmeric is used in yellow; algae and butterfly pea flower blue; lycopene from carrots and tomatoes. These dyes may be less stable, so Scale’s procedure begins by looking for natural pigments that are not affected by heat and other chemicals, and then conducts tests to determine which combination of dyes will produce the most reliable color. Next, scale can help companies lock in contracts that won’t force them too much and ensure photosensitive packaging to protect the color. Finally, there are nine to 12 months of product testing to ensure production runs smoothly and has no adverse effects on consumers, such as red-stained feces (what is known to happen with beet powder and extracts; Allen says it is harmless, but admits it is disturbing).

But Zissu’s biggest concern is that it is not enough to solve it. He said natural color demand has grown 30-50% between 30-50% across the industry as food companies began announcing announcing the use of artificial colors, and the earliest deadline to 2027.

“There is simply not enough supply to replace every project on the market,” he said. “You’ll see the biggest companies lock in colors soon, but it won’t be locked until 2030.”

There are also concerns that American consumers will reject new colors altogether. Although they peacefully accepted the light tones of natural dyes in Europe, Canada and Japan, Americans remained stubbornly attached to neon candies and grains.

Example: In 2015, General Mill promised to remove all artificial colors and seasonings from its products. The following year, it launched the natural version of Trix, a kid-friendly fruit breakfast cereal. But the soft trio of colored radish, purple carrots and turmeric is a failed trix. The customer missed the bright colors and complained that the new version was incorrect. By 2017, “Classic Trix” returned to the grocery store.

On the other hand, when Kraft re-formed the powder for macaroni and cheese and began quietly selling all-natural versions in December 2015, protests were much less. As a foodie title “Kraft changed its Mac and cheese, no one noticed it.” Maybe it was a marketing strategy – Kraft didn’t announce a large amount until after selling 50 million boxes – or because the natural dye was as orange as the original dye. (Allen recalls that her young nieces and nephew were a little worried about the change, but effortlessly accepted the new Mac and cheese.

The proverb is gone, we eat with our eyes. The appearance of the food should not change how we think about its taste, but, as anyone who buys produce knows, it does. In nature, brighter colors indicate that the food is ripe and tastes great. This principle also applies to artificial foods.

In the Middle Ages, dairy farmers mixed carrot juice and Annatto from Achiote Trees into their butter to make it more appetizing yellow, according to Ai Hisano, a professor of business history at the University of Tokyo. When scientists discovered oil-based dyes in the mid-19th century, the dairy industry was one of the first adopters: artificial dyes were cheap, and they helped make uniform yellow butter and butter and cheese that appealed to shoppers.

Other food manufacturers quickly followed suit. The meat will be red! The sandwich bread is white! Oranges – sometimes even when they are ripe – will also be orange! By the early 20th century, the U.S. government had begun to regulate food coloring to ensure it did not kill anyone.

It was also the beginning of the golden age of industrial food, such as candy, breakfast cereals and the most notorious Jell-O, which appeared in colors that nature had never seen before. Food dyes are crucial for brand dyeing. Hisano is crucial write a letter. Even if bright colors don’t really affect the flavor, because food is fully produced, people will Perception It is indeed so, it is very important. Will the beige flame-like Cheeto taste as spicy?

“I think many consumers in the early 20th century were frightened by those bright red foods,” Hisano Tell Atlantic In 2017. “But one of the reasons consumers like them is because they are excited about these colors they have never seen before.” And their knowledge of FDA regulation makes them feel safe to eat.

Because the identity of its products depends on color, the most resistant to the Kennedy initiative comes from candy manufacturers in the United States. Speaker of the National Candy Association explain The candy manufacturer won’t adopt natural dyes until federal regulations force them. Among all the largest American food companies Favorite Candy), has not yet committed to abandoning artificial dyes, except for the red 3, which has been banned. But FDA Commissioner Marty Makary told Fox News that he thinks Mars will appear earlier.

Food dye consultant Zissu expects to develop natural dyes by the 2027 deadline. In fact, since May, the FDA has approved four new natural colors – three blues and one white – for a wide range of foods, including juices, milk-based meal alternatives, cereals, fries, sugar, sugar and ready-to-eat chicken products.

But Zissu does not believe that the transition to natural dyes means that the color of food will return to pre-industrial passivation. “I believe we will always see the bright colors in candy and other items that consumers expect,” he said. “If Artificial Artificial Artificial [dye] Banned. ”

If American food manufacturers are in a big concentration, that might also help: The change will be so overwhelming that as Zissu says, “neon synths look as obsolete as trans fat.” Maybe a few years later, we’ll look back at the green mint chip ice cream. (Some have done this: many ice cream producers, including Ben & Jerry’s and Häagen-Dazs, don’t use green as a symbol of mint.)

It seems Maha is ready to help the United States in a relationship with artificial colors. But it’s with Trump administration Bold public health infrastructure.

The ice cream industry promises just 11 days after Congress passed a spending bill Cut Medicaid spendingtherefore, the health care of millions of children, and Slash snapshot Provide food assistance to American families. The same day for the Ministry of Health Dismissal Thousands of employees. Under Trump, the administration also cut research grants to scientists ResearchAmong other things, prevent disease and vaccines (JFK is a notorious skeptic). Fundamental problems such as food and housing insecurity and child poverty that destroy children’s welfare may worsen.

Alan believes that if Kennedy takes improving the health of American children seriously, the pressing issues are more pressing than food dyes. “I can’t believe there will be a chance for someone to have this impact, and that’s what they choose to do,” she said.