Kraft Heinz to Remove Artificial Dyes

The company will begin pulling artificial dyes from its domestic products beginning 2027.

June 18, 2025

Kraft Heinz will begin removing artificial dyes from its domestic products beginning 2027, reported the Associated Press.

The company reportedly said the shift would affect only about 10% of its portfolio by sales, per the New York Times.

“Kraft Heinz said Tuesday that almost 90% of its U.S. products already don’t contain food, drug and cosmetic (FD&C) colors, but that the products that do still use the dyes will have them removed by the end of 2027. FD&C colors are synthetic additives that are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in food, drugs and cosmetics,” wrote AP.

A spokeswoman confirmed it would affect brands like Kool-Aid, Jell-O, Crystal Light and other beverages and desserts that contain dyes like Red No. 40 and Blue No. 1.

The company said it will replace food, drug and cosmetic (FD&C) dyes with natural versions when possible; create new colors and shades, if necessary; or simply remove colors.

Items such as Kraft Mac & Cheese “stayed bright orange when the company ditched artificial coloring a decade ago for turmeric, paprika and annatto. Its ketchup never used an artificial color to be red,” reported the Washington Post.

The announcement comes after the FDA banned Red Dye No.3 in January and announced it was phasing out petroleum-based dyes in April.

“For decades, companies have used artificial dyes including Red 40, Yellow 5 and 6, Green 3, and Blue 1 and 2 to brighten foods or restore color lost during processing or as products age. Brightly colored candy and cake frosting use the dyes, but so do less obvious foods such as premade pie crusts and salad dressings,” wrote the Wall Street Journal.

Looking to other large brands, in mid-April, executives at PepsiCo “told Wall Street analysts that it would either migrate its various brands into natural colors or provide the consumer with natural color options in the next few years. PepsiCo’s executives said about 60% of its business was from products with no artificial colors,” wrote WSJ.