PepsiCo Foods embraces natural food colours, expands its Simply brand of snacks
The company is moving away from artificial dyes in response to growing consumer demand for natural ingredients.
USA – PepsiCo is reformulating its snacks to eliminate synthetic colours like Red No. 40 and Yellow No. 6, replacing them with natural alternatives such as tomato powder and red chile pepper, Bloomberg reports.
Health concerns have prompted this shift away from artificial dyes, particularly due to links to hyperactivity in children and potential cancer risks.
The FDA recently announced a ban on FD&C Red No. 3, effective in 2027, emphasizing the urgency for companies to find safer colour solutions.
FD&C Red No. 3 is a synthetic dye commonly used to give foods and drinks a bright, cherry-red colour. It has predominantly been utilized in products such as candy, cakes, cookies, frozen desserts, frostings, and certain ingested drugs.
Manufacturers must reformulate any products containing FD&C Red No. 3 by January 15, 2027, for food items and by January 18, 2028, for ingested drugs.
During a recent conference call with investors, PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta stated that the company aims to meet consumer demand for more natural products, as American consumers are increasingly focused on health and wellness.
PepsiCo acknowledges that reformulating existing products is a challenging process. Natural colours tend to be less stable, can alter taste, and require a more complex supply chain compared to synthetic dyes.
“It’s really hard to reformulate existing products,” said Ian Puddephat, vice president of R&D for food ingredients at PepsiCo. He added that consumers are very perceptive to even small changes.
Despite these challenges, the food industry is placing a greater emphasis on health-conscious consumers. With synthetic colours under increasing scrutiny, snack makers are adjusting their recipes, reflecting a broader trend toward cleaner, more natural ingredients in processed foods.
PepsiCo expands its Simply brand line
PepsiCo’s Simply brand, which has been free from artificial dyes since 2013, is gaining attention as the company accelerates its reformulation efforts.
The company is now introducing all-natural snacks and tortilla chips under the Simply brand. These snacks contain no artificial flavours or colours.
The latest addition to the Simply brand is the new potato chip flavour, Simply Ruffles Hot & Spicy, which is now available in North American grocery stores.
The seasoning used for Simply Ruffles Hot & Spicy provides a bold kick but lacks the bright red hue associated with the traditional Flamin’ Hot chips. Instead, the Hot & Spicy chips have an orange tint with speckled spices.
Other new offerings include White Cheddar Nacho Doritos; combining the taste of white cheddar with eight whole grains per serving, Zesty Cool Ranch Doritos; made with whole grains, a dash of buttermilk, and fresh herbs, and Tostitos Sea Salt; tortilla chips cooked with avocado oil.
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