Kraft macaroni & cheese (Photo : Reuters)
Kraft announced on Monday that will remove the atomic orange from in its Mac & Cheese product, in 2016. The new recipe will be free of synthetic dyes, and include "natural" colors instead.
Starting next year the colors will be from ingredients such as paprika and turmeric, according to E!. The changes will affect Mac & Cheese sold in the United States and Canada.
Lynne Galia, Kraft spokeswoman, explains that Kraft has been working on the switchover for "three years." This has been due to the company's attempt to maintain its "loyal fans."
Kraft has announced in a press release that the change is due to changing "family preferences." The company's change could also help it to become more competitive with the natural foods sector.
For example, Annie's sells an organic macaroni and cheese product that is "totally natural." Its sales increased 20 percent in the fiscal year that ended in March 2014, according to Quartz.
General Mills agreed to a $820 million deal to purchase Annie's in September. Last month Warren Buffet's 3G Capital announced that it would buy Annie's, and then merge it with H.J. Heinz.
Another possible reason for Kraft's ingredient change is the public's growing concern about food dyes. The Center for Science in the Public Interest discovered in a 2010 report that several of the nine Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approved dyes created "health concerns."
Two of those dyes, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6, are contained in Kraft's Mac & Cheese. Studies have linked the dyes to hyperactivity in children, although Kraft denies this affected its decision to use natural coloring.
Kraft mentioned in a statement that the FDA has ruled the colors as being "safe" for being added to foods. It notes that Health Canada and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have made the same rulings.
The risk Kraft takes is being able to use natural ingredients to duplicate the ironic orange of its current Mac & Cheese. However, Kraft promises that the new recipe will possess the same "look and taste."
