Building a Better World, Together

What’s at stake: Synthetic food dyes are used to make thousands of widely available food and drink products more vibrantly colorful. But one of them—Red Dye No. 3—has been shown to cause cancer in lab animals. And the consumption of these petroleum-derived dyes has been linked to neurobehavioral problems, such as impulsiveness and hyperactivity, in certain children. This is especially concerning because so many of the products that contain them are marketed to children.

What CR is doing: CR has been working for years to rid food and drinks of these dyes. In both 2022 and 2024, we petitioned the Food and Drug Administration, calling for a ban on Red Dye No. 3. In 2023 we co-sponsored a California law that banned Red 3 in the state. And when the FDA announced a ban on Red 3 in January, CR began urging the agency to extend the measure to all synthetic dyes.

Then, in April, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a plan under which U.S. food makers would voluntarily stop using these substances. And many large U.S. food manufacturers have since announced that they would soon phase them out.

That’s a positive step. But for consumers to feel confident that synthetic dyes will be removed from all food and drugs, CR advocates say, a mandatory and enforceable ban is still needed—especially given the food industry’s years of active resistance.

What you can do: Sign our petition to call on HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to establish a ban on synthetic dyes in food and drugs.

The Department of Energy has proposed rolling back 17 efficiency standards that ensure home appliances minimize water and energy use, saving consumers money while protecting the environment. Americans overwhelmingly support keeping these standards in place. CR submitted formal comments opposing the proposal, noting that energy-efficiency standards saved consumers more than $100 billion on energy bills in 2024 alone, an average of $500 per household.

Sign our petition to urge the DOE to reverse course and strengthen—not weaken—these critical standards.