FDA bans food dye Red 3, citing concern over cancer in some animals

The Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday it had decided to revoke Red 3’s authorization to be added to foods, over concerns about how the food coloring is linked to cancer in laboratory animals. 

FDA officials have telegraphed the decision for months. While the agency has long said that it did not think evidence of Red 3 causing cancer applied to humans, officials said their hand was forced by a law requiring the agency to pull additives that are cancerous in animals.

“The Delaney Clause is clear; the FDA cannot authorize a food additive or color additive if it has been found to cause cancer in humans or animals. Evidence shows cancer in laboratory male rats exposed to high levels of FD&C Red No.3,” said Jim Jones, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for human foods. 

A post on the FDA’s website states that claims that Red 3’s use in food or drugs “puts people at risk are not supported by the available scientific information.”

Wednesday’s decision stems from a petition filed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest and a number of other groups in 2022, calling for the additive to be pulled from the market.

The group has also championed a move by California in 2023 to ban the food dye, which is already banned from use in cosmetics.