The science behind the FDA ban on food dye Red No. 3

By Maria Godoy,

Rebecca Ramirez, Jane Greenhalgh, Emily Kwong, Berly McCoy, Hannah Chinn

Published January 20, 2025 at 7:53 AM EST

A bright red drink with a lemon and a stainless steel straw. The petroleum-based dye known as Red No. 3 is found in candy, snacks, and juice beverages, among other food and drink.

On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration announced it is banning Red No. 3, a food dye additive in many processed foods, like sodas, sweets and snacks. Recently, it and other dyes were linked to behavior issues in children.

But high levels of Red No. 3 were linked to cancer in rats decades ago. So why is the ban happening now?

Senior editor and science desk correspondent Maria Godoy answers our questions about Red No. 3 and other dyes that may replace it. Plus, should parents worry about feeding their kids products that may contain Red No. 3 before the ban takes effect?

Questions, story ideas or want us to dig into another food science issue? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!
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This episode was produced by Hannah Chinn, edited by Jane Greenhalgh and Berly McCoy, and fact check by Tyler Jones. The audio engineer was Kwesi Lee.