WK Kellogg Co Joins the Commitment To Remove Synthetic Colors

WK Kellogg Co, in the midst of an acquisition by Luxembourg’s Ferrero Group, today (July 22) announced it is reformulating products to remove synthetic colors. The cereal company said it’s going about it in three steps:

• "We are reformulating our cereals served in schools to not include FD&C colors by the 2026-27 school year.”
  
  
• “We will not be launching any new products with FD&C colors beginning in January 2026.”
  
  
• “We will remove FD&C colors from the small percentage of our foods in retail that contain them today, by the end of 2027.”

Despite its Froot Loops being the poster child for synthetic color critics, the company noted, “The vast majority – 85% – of our cereal sales contain no FD&C colors and none of our products have contained Red No. 3 for years. We are committed to continue working with HHS and FDA to identify effective solutions to remove FD&C colors from foods.”

Apple Jacks also contains some synthetic colors.

Kellogg becomes the eighth major company to commit to the removal of what they’ve all called “FD&C colors” – meaning Blue 1 & 2, Green 3, Red 3 & 40 and Yellow 5 & 6. Kellogg was preceded by, in chronological order,  Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Nestlé USA, Conagra, J.M. Smucker and Hershey.

PepsiCo, which earlier indicated it was going to remove them without setting specific dates, just yesterday gave itself one deadline: removing the colors from foods served in schools before the start of this coming school year.

Also, International Dairy Foods Assn. last week announced an agreement by 40 makers of ice cream in the U.S. to eliminate the artificial colors by Dec. 31, 2027. While the companies were not named, the association said they represent “more than 90% of the ice cream volume sold in the United States.”

Consumer Brands Assn. on July 11 quietly announced a vague voluntary commitment to “encourage” processors to remove the disputed colors from products served in schools nationwide by the start of the 2026-2027 school year.

All the activity reacts to Health & Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy’s strongly worded April 22 “request” that food & beverage companies remove them. And by as many as 30 individual states that have passed or are considering legislation to ban foods with the dyes.

“From our early days, WK Kellogg has evolved our portfolio of cereals to provide consumers with more of what they want and need – such as whole grains and fiber – and less of what they don’t, including through reductions in sugar and sodium. We continue to do that today.” The company also noted it adds “important nutrients such as iron, vitamin D and folate.”