M&M’s without artificial dyes are coming soon. These other brands are following suit

(NEXSTAR) — Mars recently announced that M&M’s made without artificial dyes will soon be available, though two iconic colors won’t be included.

The candy maker is one of several companies that have taken steps to produce products without artificial dyes following a call from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. last year.

Last spring, then-FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said the agency would move to eliminate several synthetic dyes — Green 3, Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, and Blue 2 — by the end of 2026. Red 3 was set to be banned in food by 2027 because it caused cancer in laboratory rats; the FDA called for that deadline to be moved up.

Many U.S. food companies quickly agreed to reformulate their foods, according to Sensient Colors, one of the world’s largest producers of food dyes and flavorings. In place of synthetic dyes, foodmakers can use natural hues made from beets, algae and crushed insects and pigments from purple sweet potatoes, radishes and red cabbage.

In addition to Mars (which will also produce naturally-colored........

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