US regulators are banning the dye called Red 3 from the country’s food supply, nearly 35 years after it was barred from cosmetics because of potential cancer risk.
US Food and Drug Administration officials granted a 2022 petition filed by two dozen food safety and health advocates, who urged the agency to revoke authorisation for the substance that gives some confectionery, snack cakes and maraschino cherries a bright red hue.
The agency said it was taking the action as a “matter of law” because some studies have found that the dye caused cancer in lab rats. Officials cited a statute known as the Delaney Clause, which requires FDA to ban any additive found to cause cancer in people or animals.
The Red 3 dye is also known as erythrosine or FD&C Red No. 3. The ban removes it from the list of approved colour additives in foods, dietary supplements and oral medicines, such as cough syrups.
This is a welcome, but long overdue, action from the FDA
More than three decades ago, the FDA declined to authorise use of Red 3 in cosmetics and externally applied drugs because a study showed it caused cancer when eaten by rats.
