
FDA Bans This Cancer-Causing Ingredient Found in Arizona Foods
- Food safety experts filed petitions for the removal of this toxic additive more than 30 years ago.
- This additive is found in popular foods sold in Arizona, like certain candies, supplements, and medications, and could cause cancer.
- The ban doesn't take effect right away. Here's how long manufacturers have to remove the ingredient.
Food safety advocates like the Center for Science in the Public Interest and many other consumer watchdog groups have been pushing for the removal of Red 3 (also known as erythrosine or FD&C Red No. 3) from food, drugs, and supplements for more than three decades.
They began pressuring the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to ban the ingredient when it was shown to cause cancer in rats. Some studies suggest erythrosine might also cause behavioral problems in children.
FDA: The First American Ban of Red No. 3
The FDA first banned Red 3 from cosmetics and topical drugs in 1990. Still, the additive remained approved for use in foods and some oral medications until the FDA finally ruled, banning the ingredient on January 15, 2025.
READ: California Bans This Candy! Will the New Law Ruin it for Arizona?
Why Did the FDA Ban It?
The FDA banned erythrosine based on the Delaney Clause of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which prohibits any additive found to cause cancer in humans or animals. The decision was made after a petition was filed back in 2022 by food safety advocates citing the cancer-causing potential.

What Arizona Foods Use Erythrosine?
Erythrosine was banned in California last year, and now the rest of the nation is following suit with the country-wide FDA ban.
The ingredient was typically used in candies, cakes, cupcakes, frozen desserts, frostings, icings, and certain ingested drugs. A staggering number of products use this cheap chemical to enhance the color of their "foods"; more than 3,000 products!
Here's a partial list of products that use FD&C Red No. 3:
- Candies (Skittles, Pez)
- Snack cakes (Frosted cakes)
- Maraschino cherries
- Strawberry-flavored beverages
- Certain frostings and frozen desserts
- Some oral medicines and supplements (like cough syrups)
When Does the Ban Go into Full Effect?
Just because the FDA banned the use of this ingredient doesn't mean it will magically disappear from Arizona shelves overnight.
Food manufacturers have until January 15, 2027 - more than three years, to reformulate their products to be made without erythrosine.
READ: Is It Illegal in AZ to Eat Before Paying at the Grocery Store
Oral medications and supplements have even longer to remove this ingredient: the deadline for that is January 18, 2028.
If you're concerned about this ingredient found in the food sold throughout Arizona, check labels and reject anything listed as containing FD&C Red No. 3, especially if it's something you plan to give to children.
Sources: FoxNews | FDA.gov | Desert Sun | Environmental Working Group (EWG) | AP News | Center for Science in the Public Interest | EFSA Journal
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