M&M’s, Skittles Without Synthetic Colors Coming … Online Only and Not Till Next Year

Mars Wrigley, which has been a holdout as most leading processors drop synthetic colors, says it will offer “options” made without FD&C colors in four of its leading products: M&M’s Chocolate, Skittles Original, Extra Gum Spearmint and Starburst Original fruit chews. They’re coming sometime in 2026 and apparently online only.

It was a sketchy announcement made quietly in late July without a launch date for the products or if they’ll be available at regular retailers. Much more space was devoted to other things Mars has done to improve the nutritional profile of sweets over the years.

As for whether more products will be converted, the candy giant said, “When we have identified fully effective, scalable solutions across the entire portfolio, we will share additional item commitments and timelines.

“In the United States, we are engaged closely with regulators and aware of the increased dialogue and activity regarding colors. All our products meet the high standards and applicable regulations set by food safety authorities around the world, including the FDA,” the announcement said. Nevertheless, “Our experts are exploring alternatives that satisfy scientific safety criteria, technical requirements and consumer preferences.”

We asked Mars for more detail and will add it to this story when we get it.

Despite its stated intent to remove colors nine years ago, Mars has refused to get on that bandwagon in the current debate. “In 2016, Mars Incorporated announced its ambition to remove all artificial colors from its human food portfolio globally," said a position paper earlier this year on the subject. "This was based on our belief, at the time, that a critical mass of our consumer base was seeking more natural ingredients and would welcome this change. 

“For treats, however, we found that many of our consumers across the world do not, in fact, find artificial colors to be ingredients of concern. For that reason, we will continue to prioritize our efforts to remove artificial colors in Europe — where consumers have expressed this preference — but will not be removing all artificial colors from our Mars Snacking portfolio in other markets.”

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on July 16 announced an investigation into Mars for reneging on that 2016 public pledge. Paxton said it sounds like deceptive trade practice.

Part of the motivation for the removal of FD&C colors was the strongly worded suggestion from the secretary of Health & Human Services and the FDA commissioner, who in April asked that they be removed by the end of next year. Secretary Kennedy and Commissioner Makary never said what the “or else” would be.