The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that it would loosen its policy on claims that food products do not contain artificial colors.
The agency said that food processors could previously put those claims on their labels when their products “had no added color whatsoever.” Under the new policy, products with colors derived from natural sources can now make those claims on labels, as well.
The FDA also said that it had approved two new food colorings: beetroot red and spirulina extract. Agency officials said that six new food color options have been approved under the Trump administration to date.
The FDA announced steps last year designed to phase out the use of synthetic colors in the nation’s food supply.
“We acknowledge that calling colors derived from natural sources ‘artificial’ might be confusing for consumers and a hindrance for companies to explore alternative food coloring options,” FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said in the announcement. “We’re taking away that hindrance and making it easier for companies to use these colors in the foods our families eat every day.”
