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