Mars is launching artificial dye-free M&M's in August, following sustained pressure from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again initiative to remove synthetic food dyes from American candy.
The dye-free version will hit shelves this summer. Two colors will not be included because Mars has not yet solved the problem of replacing them affordably with natural alternatives.
The colors not making the August launch are blue and another color, blue being the specific problem because spirulina, the natural blue pigment extracted from algae, costs significantly more than the synthetic FD&C Blue No. 1 it would replace.
Finding a cost-effective natural blue that survives the chocolate-coating process, holds its color under store lighting and does not affect the taste of the candy has proven to be a genuine manufacturing challenge rather than a simple ingredient swap.
Mars confirmed the August launch timeline and said it is continuing to work on natural replacements for the absent colors, with the goal of a full-color dye-free lineup eventually.
The company joins a growing list of food manufacturers who have announced plans to reformulate products after Kennedy made artificial dye removal a public priority.
The dye-free M&M's will otherwise look and taste the same as the standard version, the remaining colors replaced with natural plant-based pigments.
Whether consumers notice any difference in appearance when they open a bag that is missing two of the traditional colors is the question August will answer.