Embracing MAHA, PepsiCo to Move Away from Artificial Dyes in Snack Foods

The Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again agenda is moving forward after PepsiCo Inc., one of the nation’s largest producers of processed snack foods, announced this week it would be phasing out artificial dyes from many of its products by the end of the year.

In addition to its eponymously named cola soft drinks, PepsiCo produces many popular brands of snack foods and beverages, including Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos, Tostitos, Lay’s, Gatorade, and Mountain Dew, among others.

“We’ve been leading the transformation of the industry now for a long time on sodium reduction, sugar reduction, and better fats,” PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta said in a conference call on April 24.

“When we talk about the U.S. food business, 60%-plus of our [portfolio] today doesn’t have any artificial colors, so we’re undergoing that transition,” Laguarta explained. “For example, brands like Lay’s will be out of artificial colors by the end of this year, and the same with Tostitos—some of our big brands. So we’re well underway.”

PepsiCo’s move comes after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced at an April 22 news conference that he would be taking action against petroleum-based synthetic dyes in the American food supply. (Read more from “Embracing MAHA, PepsiCo to Move Away from Artificial Dyes in Snack Foods” HERE)

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