Is Red 40 banned?

The federal answer

The FDA regulates food dyes as color additives. A synthetic dye can only be used if it is listed in the regulations and every batch passes the agency's certification. Red 40 is listed without a date limit, so it may be used in any food at levels consistent with good manufacturing practice. The April 2025 announcement asked manufacturers to eliminate six dyes from the food supply, Red 40 included, "by the end of next year"; the FDA's tracker page now refers to the end of 2027. A company that keeps using Red 40 after that date breaks no federal rule.

On health, the FDA's own consumer page says that "the totality of scientific evidence shows that most children have no adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives, but some evidence suggests that certain children may be sensitive to them", and that its Food Advisory Committee concluded in 2011 that a link had not been established. California's environmental health office, OEHHA, reached a different conclusion in a 2021 assessment. This site reports those positions as published and does not take one.

The state answers

Each state rule below applies only within its scope. A school rule changes what a cafeteria serves; it does not stop the same snack from being sold in the store across the street. The checker at the top of this page shows each rule for any state and date, and the state list gives every law in one table.

The answer abroad

The European Union allows E129 but requires the warning sentence quoted above on foods that contain it, which is why some US brands use other colors in their European versions. The page on other countries compares the rules on the main dyes and additives.

Where Red 40 is found

It is the dye most often named on US labels. Of the products in USDA FoodData Central, 37,647 list it, led by candy. The product search lists them by category, each with the month its label was filed.