Red Dye No. 40: Is It Vegan & What's It Made From?

Red Dye No. 40 is a food dye found in numerous products. It is a dye made from chemicals, part of a family of dyes approved by the FDA that at one time were derived from coal tar but are now a highly refined petrochemical product. There are no animal products used in its manufacture.

Red Dye No. 2

• Red Dye No. 40 was originally developed by food companies as a replacement for Red Dye No. 2. Red Dye No. 2 was already in use when the FDA began regulating color additives. The FDA let additives already in use continue to be used, but Red Dye No. 2 was found in some studies to be linked to cancers in lab rats and discontinued. Red Dye No. 40 was an FDA approved alternative considered to be safe.

Cochineal Dyes

• There are red dyes made from insects. Red Dye No. 40 is not one of them. Carmine is a red dye made from insects. Found in Mexico, the small cochineal insects are found on parts of the prickly pear cactus. They are dark red in color and can be ground up into a powder to use in dye. Carmine can be found in many foods, such as red fruit-flavored candies.

Red Dye No. 40 and ADHD

• Recently there have been some studies linking the dye to ADHD, but the studies are not giving children dye, they're giving them the sugary foods containing the dye so it's difficult to say what the actual link may be between the dye and hyperactivity, if any. But there are those who think that even if the dye does not have an effect on hyperactivity, it is a bad thing just to have one more chemical in our diets.

Read the Labels

• Many of the negative feelings toward Red Dye(seem to be rooted in misconceptions. Some may be lingering stigma from Red Dye #2. Some are from the mistaken belief that the dye is made from insects such as Carmine, also a red coloring. As with any food, if one wants to avoid ingesting it the best thing to do is read the nutrition labels on foods before purchasing them. It is listed in the ingredients as Red 40.