Hundreds protest food dyes in cereals outside Kellogg headquarters

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An activist investor is leading the charge in calling on WK Kellogg Co to uphold a previous pledge to remove several food dyes from cereals like Froot Loops and Apple Jacks.

Jason Karp — a WK Kellogg Co shareholder, as well as the founder and CEO of holding company HumanCo which invests in better-for-you food and beverage brands — led a protest at the cereal company’s headquarters in Battle Creek, Michigan, on Tuesday. The demonstrators demanded Kellogg remove several dyes that can still be found on the ingredient decks of its cereals.

The ingredients in question include Red 40, Yellow 6, Blue 1 and preservative BHT, which are banned in several European countries and Canada because of associated health risks.

In 2015, Kellogg said it would remove artificial colors by 2018, which did not happen. The company reformulated products without the dyes in other countries. Big Food companies, including Mars, walked away from pledges to remove the ingredients because they found consumers were unwilling to buy products with formerly vibrant colors which the dyes ensure, industry experts told Food Dive in 2021.

In an emailed response to Food Dive, WK Kellogg Co said over 85% of its cereal products contain no artificial colors, and it is creating new cereals that do not contain them. All of the ingredients it uses, the company said, are “compliant with all applicable relevant laws and regulations.” The company said it will review a petition against the dyes filed by influencer Vani Hari, also known as Food Babe, and share it with the FDA.

According to HumanCo, this week’s protest included over hundreds of people, including doctors and other activists. In a letter to WK Kellogg Co CEO earlier this year, Karp’s attorney said Americans deserve to be sold the safer versions of Kellogg cereals that the company sells in other countries.

“As more people wake up to the dangers of artificial food dyes, Kellogg’s has a responsibility to put people’s health first by removing these neurotoxic chemicals found in the U.S. versions of their cereals that are marketed toward kids,” Karp said in a statement to Food Dive. “It’s about transparency and offering healthier choices, and we won’t stop until American children receive the safest versions of products that Kellogg already makes.”