FDA Bans Red Dye No. 3 From Foods

U.S. regulators have banned the use of Red Dye No. 3 in the nation's food supply, nearly 35 years after it was prohibited in cosmetics due to a potential cancer risk, as reported by Jonel Aleccia for the Associated Press (AP).

Decades ago, the FDA declined to approve Red 3 for use in cosmetics and externally applied drugs after evidence of its cancer-causing potential emerged. I Photo: U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted a 2022 petition submitted by two dozen food safety and health advocates, urging the agency to revoke authorization for the dye, which is used to give candies, snack cakes, and maraschino cherries their bright red color.

The FDA cited studies indicating the dye caused cancer in lab rats and invoked the Delaney Clause, a legal statute requiring the agency to ban any additive found to cause cancer in humans or animals.

Known as erythrosine, FD&C Red No. 3, or simply Red 3, the dye is now prohibited in foods, dietary supplements, and oral medicines such as cough syrups. Decades ago, the FDA declined to approve Red 3 for use in cosmetics and externally applied drugs after evidence of its cancer-causing potential emerged.