Red Dye No. 3 Just Got Banned—Here Are The Most Popular Foods Affected
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On January 15, the Food and Drug Administration announced a ban on synthetic coloring Red No. 3 (also often referred to as Red 3, FC&C Red 3, and FD&C Red No. 3). As you can guess, the dye is often responsible for the red color you find in many foods, drinks, and even medicines. The FDA first banned the dye, which has been linked to cancer (in lab rats only) and possibly to behavioral issues in children, from use in cosmetics and topical medications back in 1990. The dye is also currently banned from use in foods in the European union, New Zealand, and Australia (with an interesting exception: maraschino cherries), and was previously banned in California back in 2023.
"FD&C Red No. 3 has been primarily used in certain food products, such as candy, cakes and cupcakes, cookies, frozen desserts, and frostings and icings, as well as certain ingested drugs," states the FDA. Any food manufacturers who currently use Red No. 3 will have until January 15, 2027 to reformulate their products, while drug manufactures will have an additional year. This means, for the time being, these products with the banned ingredient will still be in circulation—and there are quite a lot!
According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), there are upwards of 9,200 products in America—McCormick and Wilton's Red Food Coloring included—that currently contain the dye, some more popular than others. Here's a sampling of some of the most popular:
Maraschino Cherries
Many brands of maraschino cherry include the ill-fated Red 3, but there's no need to pour one out for the beloved Shirley Temple. Brands like Luxardo and Mezzetta don't use the dye, so you can still scoop those up worry-free today.
Vigo Yellow Rice
Most brand of yellow or saffron rice are Red Dye No. 3-free, but Vigo brand uses the dye, so others likely do, as well.
Cake & Cupcake Mixes
I love a confetti cake as much as the next kid, but a lot of these colorful confections, like Pillsbury Funfetti Strawberry Cake & Cupcake Mix with Candy Bits, use the dreaded No. 3. The chocolate and yellow cake versions also have it. (Many others use Red 40, which is another synthetic food dye).
Nesquik Strawberry Milk
Some brands, like Nesquik, use Red No. 3 to make their strawberry milk pink. However, many use natural coloring, including Fairlife and Horizon Organic.
Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bar
Sadly, America's favorite shortcake bar is going to have to reevaluate how to get that striking pink color we've all come to recognize from Good Humor's signature ice cream bar. We trust it won't affect the flavor!
Certain Ensure Flavors
Ensure is known for its nutritional shakes, but not all flavors are created equal. The strawberry and peach shakes contain Red 3, but other options like milk chocolate, cherry cheesecake, vanilla, chocolate, and mocha are all clear.
Pez
If you're one of those people who collect Pez dispensers, you might want to stay away from the Pez itself—cherry, grape, strawberry, orange, lemon, and raspberry flavors all contain Red No 3. For now!
Brach's Conversation Hearts
Sorry to break it to ya, lovebirds, but those iconic Brach's conversation hearts you've been passing out for years are indeed a Red No. 3 carrier. If you're concerned, pivot to Sweethearts or Sweettarts brand hearts this year.
Candy Corn
You won't find me losing any sleep over this one. I am firmly on team candy corn is gross, so I am not shocked to discover that these little Halloween gremlins use the newly banned dye. Peace!
A final note: While the Red No. 3 ban certainly affects a handful of food and beverages, it's not as widespread as some other outlets are reporting. Many are inaccurately reporting that some flavored puddings, strawberry Pediasure, Fruit by the Foot, and certain sausages, among many other items, contain the dye. None that we were able to find do, but the much more prevalent Red Dye 40 is in numerous products on store shelves—from cereals and toaster pastries to sodas, ice creams, and even Gatorade. It's also in a number of medications, like the heartburn med omeprazole and pain reliever Tylenol. California, ever ahead of the game, has also placed a ban on this synthetic dye.
"CSPI's advice to parents is to avoid not only Red 3, but all numbered dyes, such as Yellow 5 and Red 40. Aside from the risk of cancer posed by Red 3, concerns have mounted about the adverse impacts of these synthetic dyes on children's behavior," states the organization.
While the FDA doesn't appear to be banning any other synthetic dyes quite yet, they just might be next to face the firing squad.
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