Foods with no dyes are primarily whole, unprocessed items like fresh fruits, vegetables, plain dairy, meats, and grains, but many brands offer dye-free options in processed snacks, cereals, and drinks by using colors from natural sources (like fruit/veggie juice), so checking labels for "no artificial colors" or specific dye lists is key for packaged goods.
Dye-Free Snack Alternatives
What's not in our food is just as important. Our seven classic burgers—from our Big Mac® to the Quarter Pounder® with Cheese—contain no artificial preservatives or flavors, and no added colors from artificial sources (except the pickle).
A few examples of common foods that contain harmful dyes include:
Our iconic Heinz Tomato Ketchup has never had artificial dyes – the red color comes simply from the world's best tomatoes.
Foods that contain Red Dye 40
Sodas and other soft drinks. Condiments (most ketchups don't contain dye though) Puddings. Dairy products like ice cream, sherbet, flavored milks, and frozen yogurt.
No. Tomatoes are not colored with red dye. Color additives may not be used to deceive consumers or to conceal blemishes or inferiorities in food products.
Red 3 causes cancer in animals, and there is evidence that several other dyes also are carcinogenic. Three dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6) have been found to be contaminated with benzidine or other carcinogens. At least four dyes (Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6) cause hypersensitivity reactions.
Common, naturally dye-free snacks for kids may include:
Here are some examples of drinks that kids drink on regular basis that contain red dye #40: Coca Cola, Dr. Pepper, Seven Up, Gatorade, Hawaiian Punch, and Pepsi.
Our Commitment to You
Every one of our ALDI-exclusive brand food products are completely free from certified synthetic colors and has no added MSG.
Here are the seven healthiest snacks on McDonald's menu, according to our trusty nutritionist.
Already, all KFC chicken is free of food dyes.
These items are examples of what might be considered in a clean diet:
Choose Fresh, Naturally Colorful Foods
Fresh fruits and vegetables are naturally vibrant and full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber - none of which artificial dyes provide. Try swapping artificially colored snacks like fruit-flavored gummies for fresh options like berries or orange slices.
Cochineals are tiny bugs that live on prickly pear cactuses. The acid in their guts makes a red dye used in textiles, cosmetics, and foods like M&Ms and Yoplait yogurt. Indigenous people across Latin America traded it for thousands of years.
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PROCESSED BREAD
Most of the bread manufacturers use artificial caramel color so that the white bread appears brown.
It typically takes between 24–48 hours for food to leave, or transit, a person's system. This can include food that turns stool blue. A person may have blue stool during this transit period, despite not eating any more blue dyed foods.
Food dye can come from natural and artificial sources. Food dye from artificial sources has been linked to health concerns like cancer risk, as well as hyperactivity and neurobehavioral issues in children. This research is ongoing. Foods that include dye are considered ultra-processed foods.
Doritos owner PepsiCo just announced it's removing synthetic petroleum-based dyes (namely Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6) from their nacho cheese flavor used in their Doritos recipe.
Kraft Heinz stripped artificial colors, flavors and preservatives from its macaroni and cheese in 2016 and said it has never used artificial dyes in its ketchup.
While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers certified synthetic colors safe for use, we've opted to source plant-based color ingredients, such as beet juice, paprika and turmeric. Bisphenol-A, commonly known as BPA, is a chemical that may be found in food packaging and non-food products.
Instead of trying to avoid specific ingredients like red dye, focus on choosing more whole foods such as vegetables, fruits, lean proteins and whole grains. By doing this, you will inherently reduce your intake of synthetic food dyes, adds Colbert.
Most yogurt is dye free. If you're finding that what you typically buy has dye in it, just know that you don't have to give up that entire category of food and instead you probably just need a different brand/flavor.