[MONDAY MINUTE] Dirty Truth About Natural Food Dyes

Since it’s natural…does that inherently make it better? Everyone knows by now that RFK Jr. took aim at synthetic dyes, generally made from petroleum and/or concocted in labs, claiming they can compromise our health. Think “Yellow 5” that makes Mountain Dew a neon shade or those bright-red Skittles courtesy of “Red 40.” Arguably, well before the MAHA report was published…the broader CPG industry had been slowly transitioning away from artificial food dyes. But that’s neither here nor there…as I’m more concerned with the blanket consumer belief that “natural always equals better.” As an example, did you know natural colorings won’t face the same regulatory scrutiny level as synthetic dyes? Yet natural sources may be treated with pesticides…and the processing to strip contamination usually involve various solvents (which could remain in the final material). Also, (something like eight times) more natural colorings than synthetic dyes are required to make the same shade in a final food. Inevitably, some will cry foul…claiming I’m a paid robot for Big CPG, Big Chemical, or whatever. However, as a strategist with deep domain expertise…I’m simply trying to push back on this notion that natural sources of color inherently mean that they are safer (or free of potentially harmful compounds).