The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced a comprehensive ban on a common food coloring. While food bans are often controversial – find us as sophisticated foodies not complaining about the reasons why haggis is illegal or about the ban on clotted cream from supermarket shelves – the only uproar is over the ban on red dye #3 the reason it took so long for the regulator to cancel it. Red Dye #3 has long been linked to possible carcinogenic effects in humans and animals when consumed. Numerous food manufacturers have now voluntarily given up the products in recent years. The state of California even made it illegal in 2023.

What does this mean for your favorite scarlet foods and drinks? Well, manufacturers who haven’t already banned the dye may soon change the formula. The FDA has decided this red no. 3 must be free of consumable food and beverages by January 15, 2027 and no medications by the same date in 2028. The dye is typically used to achieve a cherry red color that can be reproduced by substituting an alternative color, red Dye No. 40. However, even the substitute has come under fire for being potentially linked to a number of health risks (including behavioral problems and another possible carcinogenic link), leading to greater discussion about the problems of artificial colors in food.

Read more: 14 1990s-era snacks you probably forgot existed

Should red dye #3 be replaced?

When you look around your kitchen for dangers, you probably think of things like the fact that putting metal in the microwave is harmful. You probably aren’t staring at a box of sugary cereal and thinking about the possibility that it could lead to a tumor. However, scientists have known that red dye No. 3 caused cancer in laboratory animals since the 1990s, when the FDA banned the dye in topical drugs and cosmetics. This should have forced the FDA to take action, but it wasn’t until 35 years later that a ban was enacted. Also keep in mind that red dye #40, a common replacement for #3, is also banned in California. The Cleveland Clinic notes that red dye No. 40 is linked to hyperactivity in children and allergic reactions and may contain benzene, another known carcinogen.

The European Union has banned a number of dyes and requires the use of dyes that are still legal to be disclosed on the packaging. Why didn’t the US do the same? “(Food) companies have lost sight of their core mission of providing food we can live on and are instead focusing solely on their profits,” Dr. Jerold Mande, associate professor of nutrition at Harvard University, told CNN. Banning cheap artificial colors forces companies to look for natural alternatives, which is a costly process. For many, the ban on red dye No. 3 is a good step, but it probably should have come much earlier and been accompanied by other, more far-reaching restrictions.

Read the original article on Foodie.