Petroleum dyes are leaving the pantry

On April 22, 2025, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary announced a plan to get petroleum-based dyes out of the American food supply. The FDA would revoke two dyes outright, approve natural replacements, and ask industry to drop the six still in wide use: Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2 and Green 3. Kennedy said some food producers had been feeding Americans petroleum-based chemicals “without their knowledge or consent.”

At a church potluck, the sign-up sheet is the easy part. A full clipboard in the hallway feeds nobody. What counts is what shows up on the table after Mass.

The FDA posted the sign-up sheet where everyone can read it. Its pledge tracker, updated Sept. 15, 2026, lists 31 commitments from 30 companies and trade groups, including Walmart, Hershey, Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Kellogg, PepsiCo, Mars and Nestlé, plus the national associations for bakers, dairy and packaged foods.

Here is the table so far. The FDA marks 11 commitments complete. Nestlé USA's pledge to clear certified dyes from its entire U.S. food and drink line is done. So are Tyson's, Campbell's, Target's for its cereal aisle, Sam's Club's for its Member's Mark brand, and Aramark's for school menus in more than 350 districts. Mars now sells M&M's and Skittles options without certified colors. The rest are still cooking: Walmart's store brands are due in January 2027, and Hershey and Kraft Heinz by the end of 2027.

What is running late

These are pledges, not a ban, and some are slipping. When the FDA launched the effort it aimed to clear the six main dyes by the end of 2026, and its tracker now says the end of 2027. The Center for Science in the Public Interest calls the deal a voluntary understanding, and General Mills' promise to clear its cereals by summer 2026 still shows as in progress.

Grant all of it. A formal ban is a slow road. The FDA found in 1990 that Red No. 3 caused cancer in lab animals and did not revoke it for food until January 2025. The voluntary route has already changed real products on real shelves in about 17 months. The FDA also did its own share: it finalized the revocation of Orange B, proposed revoking Citrus Red No. 2, and approved five natural colors, including gardenia blue and a red made from beets, so companies have something to switch to.

Next time you're in the cereal aisle, flip the box over. If you see Red 40 or Yellow 5, check the FDA's pledge tracker, which will also show whether the 2027 deadlines hold, and buy from the cooks who actually brought their dish.