Major food colouring dye has been banned over cancer fears

The US has banned a major red food colouring dye after tests presented health risks linked with cancer.

Food and drink regulators in the US have made the decision to ban the red dye, which is currently used in sweets, cakes, and cookies, as well as some medicines.

The ban will not be immediate, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are demanding that food manufacturers have the dye removed from all products by January 2027.

What is Red No. 3?

Food and drink regulators in the US have made the decision to ban the a major food colouring dye (Getty Stock Images)

The food colouring, known as Red No. 3, was previously banned in cosmetics by the FDA 35 years ago. And recent testing on lab rats showed that the consumption of the dye could be posing health risks.

According to the FDA, this specific dye is 'a colour additive made from petroleum that gives foods and drinks a bright cherry-red colour'.

Plenty of sugary snacks contain the ingredient, like the much-loved US coloured sweets - Pez.

But the additive is also used in cough syrups and vitamin gummies to give them a much more appealing colour.

Why has the dye been banned?

The ban will not take immediate effect (Getty Stock Images)

After testing the additive on male laboratory rats, studies found that consumption of the ingredient was linked to cancer. And US law requires a ban on any ingredient that has known links to the disease.

The FDA's deputy commissioner for human foods, Jim Jones, said, per ABC News: "The FDA is taking action that will remove the authorisation for the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and ingested drugs.

"Evidence shows cancer in laboratory male rats exposed to high levels of FD&C Red No.3."

The Center for Science in the Public Interest was just one of the groups who had campaigned for the ban, after noting that products containing the ingredient were specifically made for children.

It's not just the US that has problems with the ingredient

The US isn't the only country to impose a ban (Getty Stock Image)

There are restrictions on Red No. 3 in countries like Australia and New Zealand, as well as the European Union.

Dr Peter Lurie, president of The Center for Science in the Public Interest group, released a statement which said: "At long last, the FDA is ending the regulatory paradox of Red 3 being illegal for use in lipstick, but perfectly legal to feed to children in the form of candy."

A study identified that 9,201 US food products contain Red No. 3 - including hundreds of products made by the country’s biggest food companies.