FDA approves, expands 3 natural color additives after RFK Jr.'s plan to remove artificial food dyes

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: ABC News

May 9, 2025, 12:46 PM


The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Friday additional color additives from natural sources in line with the Department of Health and Human Services' goal to eliminate artificial food dyes.

The agency approved two dyes and expanded approval of a third, meaning it can now be used in a wider range of food products.

"Today we take a major step to Make America Healthy Again," HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement. "For too long, our food system has relied on synthetic, petroleum-based dyes that offer no nutritional value and pose unnecessary health risks. We're removing these dyes and approving safe, natural alternatives -- to protect families and support healthier choices."

The approved additives include Galdieria extract blue, which is derived from algae; butterfly pea flower extract from the butterfly pea flower; and calcium phosphate, a natural compound containing calcium and phosphorus.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Health/fda-approves-expands-3-natural-color-additives-after/story?id=121641300

---

Link to FDA NEWS RELEASE - FDA Approves Three Food Colors from Natural Sources


The Calcium Phosphate (which is white) has variants already used in cooking and is GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe).

The "natural" blues are usually hard to come by because they tend to "run" but 2 of the 3 that have been approved are these blues -

Galdieria extract blue (a blue - diluted, it looks like FD&C Blue 2, which is a light blue)



Diluted -



Butterfly pea flower extract (also a blue - looks closer to FD&C Blue 1, which is a dark blue)

[Historic NY]

1. I was worried we'd be eating cochineal

for red.

[AllyCat]

3. Is that the one that comes from beetles?

[Historic NY]

4. yes

Red dye beetle.

[BumRushDaShow]

6. That has generally already been approved as "Carmine"

(the extract). I had posted about it this past January - https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=3374101

https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=73.100

[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 21, Volume 1]
[CITE: 21CFR73.100]



TITLE 21--FOOD AND DRUGS
CHAPTER I--FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
SUBCHAPTER A - GENERAL

PART 73 -- LISTING OF COLOR ADDITIVES EXEMPT FROM CERTIFICATION

Subpart A - Foods
Sec. 73.100 Cochineal extract; carmine.

(a) Identity. (1) The color additive cochineal extract is the concentrated solution obtained after removing the alcohol from an aqueous-alcoholic extract of cochineal (Dactylopius coccus costa (Coccus cacti L.)). The coloring principle is chiefly carminic acid.

(2) The color additive carmine is the aluminum or calcium-aluminum lake on an aluminum hydroxide substrate of the coloring principles, chiefly carminic acid, obtained by an aqueous extraction of cochineal (Dactylopius coccus costa (Coccus cacti L.)).

(3) Color additive mixtures for food use made with cochineal extract or carmine may contain only diluents that are suitable and that are listed in this subpart as safe in color additive mixtures for coloring foods.

(b) Specifications. (1) Cochineal extract shall conform to the following specifications:

pH, not less than 5.0 and not more than 5.5 at 25 deg.C.

Protein (N * 6.25), not more than 2.2 percent.

Total solids, not less than 5.7 and not more than 6.3 percent.

Methyl alcohol, not more than 150 parts per million.

Lead (as Pb), not more than 10 parts per million.

Arsenic (as As), not more than 1 part per million.

Carminic acid, not less than 1.8 percent.

(2) Carmine shall conform to the following specifications:

Volatile matter (at 135 deg.C. for 3 hours), not more than 20.0 percent.

Ash, not more than 12.0 percent.

Lead (as Pb), not more than 10 parts per million.

Arsenic (as As), not more than 1 part per million.

Carminic acid, not less than 50.0 percent.

Carmine and cochineal extract shall be pasteurized or otherwise treated to destroy all viable Salmonella microorganisms. Pasteurization or such other treatment is deemed to permit the adding of safe and suitable substances (other than chemical preservatives) that are essential to the method of pasteurization or other treatment used. For the purposes of this paragraph, safe and suitable substances are those substances that perform a useful function in the pasteurization or other treatment to render the carmine and cochineal extract free of viable Salmonella microorganisms, which substances are not food additives as defined in section 201(s) of the act or, if they are food additives as so defined, are used in conformity with regulations established pursuant to section 409 of the act.

(c) Uses and restrictions. Carmine and cochineal extract may be safely used for coloring foods generally in amounts consistent with good manufacturing practice, except that they may not be used to color foods for which standards of identity have been promulgated under section 401 of the act unless added color is authorized by such standards.

(d) Labeling requirements. (1) The label of the color additives and any mixtures intended solely or in part for coloring purposes prepared therefrom shall conform to the requirements of § 70.25 of this chapter.

(2) The label of food products intended for human use, including butter, cheese, and ice cream, that contain cochineal extract or carmine shall specifically declare the presence of the color additive by listing its respective common or usual name, "cochineal extract" or "carmine," in the statement of ingredients in accordance with § 101.4 of this chapter.

(e) Exemption from certification. Certification of these color additives is not necessary for the protection of the public health, and therefore batches thereof are exempt from the certification requirements of section 721(c) of the act.

[42 FR 15643, Mar. 22, 1977, as amended at 74 FR 216, Jan. 5, 2009]

Carmine is the "extract" of the crushed insect that is diluted for use as a dye/colorant. Direct use of the crushed cochineal insect as the dye or colorant, retains the labeled name as "cochineal".

[womanofthehills]

14. You can get a nice red dye from beets

If you buy natural food coloring for baking - red is from beets. Or you can make your own. I bake totally organic cannabis cookies and use a red beet dye for my cookie glaze.

“HOW TO MAKE NATURAL RED BEET FOOD COLORING”

“Did you know that the vibrant red color of beets is perfect for creating a natural red food coloring? The bright stain from red beets that may cause you to cringe every time you think of cooking or handling beets is actually a beautiful, fascinating, and underdeveloped feature of the red beet. “

https://www.justbeetit.com/beet-blog-index/red-beet-natural-food-coloring-dye-diy

[AllyCat]

2. I don't dispute some of these colors and flavors are a problem, but....

...this man is a lunatic. And I wouldn't put it past the industry to be allowed to "use up their existing stock of current dyes and flavors" just like what happened with lead paint.

Any agreement with this Brainworm guy ENDS THERE.

He is dangerous. Vaccines are lifesaving. Research into cancer treatments, women's health initiatives, other health conditions, and literally anything else that helps medical science is not on this idiot's wavelength.

The autism "list" alone is a complete invasion of privacy and will net no helpful result.

Everything else this loon is doing will HURT Americans.

The "natural" colors thing is a drop in the bucket of things we should be focused on.

[underpants]

5. I agree. He's right in a couple of things but those are vastly outweighed

by how dangerous he is.

Food dyes, actual sugar in soft drinks, healthcare over sick care.

But he’s killing vaccines with these placebo tests. They’ve never done that because they don’t need to. Science and vaccines have a pretty remarkable record.

He brought up CIA mind control experiments in public the other day. Okay we know that. He sounded like a college freshman trying to stand out as smart. He’s bringing fringe fringe elements and the Surgeon General nominees are all over the place.

[womanofthehills]

15. Every prescription drug that goes on the market has a placebo test

Why shouldn’t vaccines be held to the same standard? You can go over to the government site “clinicaltrials.gov” and see what the all the various vaccine trials used as control trials. It’s not always a similar vaccine. At that site- just type in the vaccine trials you want info on and all the trials and controls will come up.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/

[womanofthehills]

24. Wow! Tyson is doing this end of May

“Tyson Foods commits to removing synthetic dyes amid FDA's health push”

“Tyson Foods is changing the way it prepares food for customers amid a heavy push from the Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.”

“Petroleum-based synthetic dyes will be cut from the company's food products by the end of May, according to Tyson Foods CEO, Donnie King.

The announcement was made during the company's Q2 earnings call meeting on Monday, May 5.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/nutrition/tyson-foods-commits-to-removing-synthetic-dyes-amid-fdas-health-push/ar-AA1Eh8LH

[Irish_Dem]

7. Have these ingredients undergone placebo, double blind studies?

[BumRushDaShow]

8. Different criteria

between "foods" and "drugs".

(true though)

[Irish_Dem]

9. Some of those foods could be dangerous.

And they are going to be used widely and in many of our foods.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. A lot of the foods can be and are dangerous

but worse are the "food supplements" - i.e., various vitamins and minerals and plant extracts, etc. - stuff that brainworm host would covet. They are not generally regulated as "drugs" but as "food", so there is a different (somewhat lower) standard. The homeopathics have some extra regulation but they have their own dosing system anyway.

[Irish_Dem]

12. I agree, there is no regulation for supplements.

Every couple of years there are random audits of the supplements.
Many of them do not even contain the advertised herbal ingredients.

[womanofthehills]

25. Probably the most dangerous chemicals on our foods are pesticides

Strawberries & spinach have highest traces of pesticides among all fruits and vegetables — and corn, soy, beans, oats, lentils, almonds have highest levels of glyphosate plus numerous other pesticides like atrazine. Glyphosate and atrazine are illegal to use in many countries Atrazine is outlawed in Europe & even Russia doesn’t use glyphosate.

Business Insider - “Strawberries and spinach often contain pesticides even after washing, according to an annual report of toxic chemicals in produce”

[Irish_Dem]

30. Exactly.

What is the danger of concentrated and widespread use as a food coloring.

[womanofthehills]

16. What is weird- first we were told by main stream news

All vaccines had placebo studies and how dare we question them.

Now we are being told by the news it’s unethical to have placebo studies.

?????????

[Irish_Dem]

17. Both statements are true.

All the vaccines have had long term random, double blind, placebo studies.
There are long term and very expensive research projects.

Once the vaccines have been approved, they require yearly updated boosters to account for for the
fact viruses mutate as they work through the population.

Because these are time sensitive studies, the yearly boosters have to get to market quickly,
there is not the time to do the long term studies. And it is unethical to deny a child a life
saving booster, which would have to happen in placebo studies.

In a placebo study, one treatment is the vaccine, the other is an inert substance.

[womanofthehills]

27. clinical trials.gov has all the trials of all the vaccines

Type in the name of the vaccine and the trials will come up.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/

[womanofthehills]

28. But according to Dr Offit the placebo can have polysorbate 80 & aluminum

"Indeed, a wide range of placebos have been used in vaccine trials," Offit wrote. "These placebos might contain buffers, stabilizing agents, emulsifying agents, or adjuvants, like aluminum salts. They might contain sodium citrate, sodium phosphate, sucrose or polysorbate-80 … all meet the FDA criteria for a placebo."

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2025/jan/02/ron-johnson/yes-there-have-been-placebo-controlled-studies-on/

[Irish_Dem]

29. These would be considered inert compared to the treatment medication.

Inert means no inherent treatment benefit.

[NH Ethylene]

10. I'm glad he is addressing food colors.

Too bad everything else he is obsessed with is wrong and dangerous.

[yardwork]

19. He's probably wrong about this, too.

If he's right, it's by accident.

[NH Ethylene]

22. Red Dye #3 was already set to be taken off the market under the Biden administration.

Europe banned its use in food in 1994.

California has banned red dye 40, yellow dyes 5 and 6, blue dyes 1 and 2, and green dye 3 from being offered in schools starting in 2028.

The US always lags behind on food safety regulations because of pressure from the food industries.

[yardwork]

23. Exactly. Let's not pretend that the Republicans care about health.

If they appear to, we know there's a grift somewhere.

[womanofthehills]

26. He definitely is into using fewer pesticides

And more regenerative farming.

This can be done. Organic Valley milk is a good example of a success in the milk industry. Organic Valley is a farmer owned cooperative of hundreds of US dairy farms . It’s a huge success - even Walmart sells their milk. Farmers joining forces instead of big corporations owning everything.

[eppur_se_muova]

13. Our bones are made of calcium phosphate, so I'm guessing it's not harmful, except ...

in the form of a bludgeon.

[BumRushDaShow]

18. "Our bones are made of calcium phosphate"

As are kidney stones.

Just get some acid in there to dissolve it!

(colas run around pH 4 )

[eppur_se_muova]

20. "There are four types of kidney stones: calcium oxalate, uric acid, struvite, and cystine."

https://www.kidney.org/kidney-topics/kidney-stones

Most kidney stones are composed of calcium and oxalate.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/kidney-stones

[BumRushDaShow]

21. "Struvite" is the one that contains phosphate

https://www.kidney.org/struvite-stones

What causes struvite stones?

Struvite stones are caused by an upper urinary tract infection (UTI) from bacteria. Ammonia produced as a waste product by the bacteria can make the urine less acidic (or more alkaline). Struvite stones form when the urine becomes more alkaline. The main chemicals in a struvite stone include struvite (magnesium ammonium phosphate) and calcium carbon-apatite. These stones can grow quickly and become quite large. This can happen with few symptoms at first or little warning.

Needs acid to dissolve!

[bucolic_frolic]

31. Meanwhile, sodium nitrite, growth hormones remain in the food chain

Read the labels much?

I don't think these food dye removals will do anything.