Minnesota-based General Mills says it will remove artificial coloring from all of its products in the next two years.
The company said Tuesday that 85% of its retail products and “nearly all” of its school offerings are already made without “certified colors.”
It will excise the dyes from all of its cereals and school products by summer of 2026, and the rest of its lineup by the end of 2027. General Mills’ brands include Pillsbury, Betty Crocker, Cheerios and a variety of other popular cereals, though the company did not say which brands actually contain artificial dyes.
The company did confirm reports that three Cheerios flavors were being discontinued: Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Oat Crunch, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios Minis. The halting of production on these flavors, though, was not necessarily connected to the move to move toward eliminating artificial dyes.
“Across the long arc of our history, General Mills has moved quickly to meet evolving consumer needs, and reformulating our product portfolio to remove certified colors is yet another example,” CEO and Chairman Jeff Harmening said.
Kraft Heinz made a similar announcement on Tuesday.
In April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services asked the food industry to stop using synthetic food dyes, though the agencies stopped short of banning them entirely. The FDA currently allows 36 food color additives, including eight synthetic dyes. The dyes are used heavily in U.S. products, although certain states, including California and West Virginia, have enacted bans to restrict their use.
General Mills, headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, reported $20 billion in net sales last year.
Eric Henderson and
Mary Cunningham
contributed to this report.
