On June 3, 2008, a petition to ban eight artificial food dyes was requested to the US Food and Drug Administration because they are negatively linked to child behavior problems. The eight dyes include: Yellow 5, Red 40, Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Orange B, Red 3, and Yellow 6. All of the dyes, with the exception of Orange B, are permitted for use in Canada. AND get this! In Canada, companies are not required to list which dyes they use in products. The dye can simply be listed as ‘colours’. Still not worried about this? Well, a package of Skittles & Francesco’s favorite snack “fruit roll-ups” includes the product’s colour tartrazine (Yellow 5), which is derived from coal tar. (Thanks to the Globe & Mail I will never eat Skittles again! I can’t tell you the amount I’ve consumed in my lifetime.)
Another group of codes to memorize before you leave to grocery shop. Just when we thought parents got a break from the BPA fiasco! Sad how the dyes are added to make food enticing for children by making it more ‘fun’. The dyes and coloring are commonly used in cereal, candies and snack foods….here is a list released by Center for Science in the Public Interest (SCPI) of foods high in artificial dye:
Source: Center for Science in the Public Interest
General Mills’ Fruit Roll-ups and Fruit-by-the-Foot flavored snacks: these are dyed with Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Red 40, and Blue 1.
General Mills’ Fruity Cheerios, Lucky Charms, and Trix; Kellogg’s Froot Loops and Apple Jacks; and Post’s Fruity Pebbles also contain “several of the problematic dyes” said the CSPI.
More than a dozen varieties of Kraft’s Oscar Meyer Lunchables kids’ meals contain artificial food dyes in the US, but not in the UK.
Mars products like Starburst Chews, Skittles, and M&M candies contain the “full spectrum of artificial colors” in the US, but not in the UK, where they contain natural colourings.
Even foods that aren’t brightly coloured have dyes, including some brands of macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes.
For example, Betty Crocker’s Au Gratin “100% Real” Potatoes contain Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 (both derived from coal tar said the CSPI).
In the UK, the strawberry colour of McDonald’s strawberry sauce for sundaes comes from strawberries, whereas in the US, it comes from Red 40, said the watchdog.
Not good news for Francesco and my girls that eat Fruit Loops like there will be a worldwide shortage the next day. They are also big fans of fruit snacks (okay so is their mom!).
Europe and other countries are already using natural food dyes instead of artificially made dyes. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), said the UK had already banned some of the eight previously mentioned dyes. If natural dyes and colorings are available to use, why isn’t Canada and the States using them in our food? More to follow I’m sure with this hot topic, but especially concerning for Canadians. I find it infuriating that I can’t read the package of food my kid’s eat and know if the especially harmful dyes are included in their food.
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