the u s version of kraft mac n cheese use yellow dyes 5 & 6 while the u k version does not
those dyes are toxic and derived from crude oil
Have you ever wondered how Kraft Macaroni and Cheese gets its electric orange-yellow glow? Let us introduce you to Yellow Dye #5 and Yellow Dye #6, two potentially harmful chemicals used in the North American versions of Kraft's macaroni products.
Also known as Tartrazine and Sunset Yellow respectively, these dyes are conspicuously absent from Kraft's U.K. versions of Macaroni and Cheese. Why? Because the Brits revolted over their potentially harmful side-effects, demanding the company remove them. And now, two famous food bloggers are leading the charge to pressure Kraft into doing the same for its North American customers.
Vani Hari of Food Babe and Lisa Leake of 100 Days of Real Food recently launched a Change.org petition insisting Kraft remove Yellow Dye #5 and #6 from this childhood staple.
Their petition has already garnered almost a quarter of a million signatures.
According to the campaign, both dyes are man-made products derived from petroleum, a crude oil. They’ve already been banned in countries like Norway and Austria and are linked to a host of disturbing side-effects like asthma and migraines, in addition to hyperactivity and learning impairments in children.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest reports that #5 and #6 are also tainted with known carcinogens.
In their video, Hari and Leake taste-tested the U.K. and U.S. versions and found them to be virtually the same. So it seems that Kraft found a safer way to elicit that orange-yellow glow and cheesy taste without using these chemicals for their British consumers, but not for their American ones.
While it's true that no one is forced to buy Mac 'N Cheese, and no one should expect it to be a "health food," if the company has already discovered a way to recreate an authentic taste and appearance with safer ingredients, doesn't corporate responsibility dictate that they do so? And aren't the concerns of its American customers just as important as their British counterparts?
In response to the campaign, a Kraft released this public statement, “The safety and quality of our products is our highest priority and we take consumer concerns very seriously,” she said. “We carefully follow the laws and regulations in the countries where our products are sold. So in the U.S., we only use colors that are approved and deemed safe for food use by the FDA.”
Let's take a closer look at that: First, FDA approval isn't necessarily a stamp of safety. According to Hari and Leake's recent appearance on the Dr. Oz Show, there are over 91 artificial dyes previously used in foods and cosmetics that were at one point "FDA-approved" but are now banned.
Second, in the U.K's Mac and Cheese products, dyes #5 and #6 were easily replaced with paprika and beta carotene, two natural substances that don't alter the look or taste of the food. Their only caveat: they're more expensive to use.
Whatever Kraft's reasoning, it should take heed—online petitions are powerful weapons that can yield tremendous results in altering our food-system landscape. Recently, the makers of Gatorade acquiesced to a Change.org petition started by a 16-year-old student to nix brominated vegetable oil from the makeup of its citrus-flavored drinks.
In addition to the Change.org campaign and its overwhelming press coverage on shows like NBC andCNN, consumers have also taken to the product's Facebook page, leaving comments demanding that Kraft change its formula.
The food giant can dig in its heels all it wants, but considering the online popularity of bloggers Hari and Leake, and the determination of American moms to serve their kids healthier foods, it appears that Kraft is in for quite a fight. Buckle up.
Would you buy foods made with Yellow Dye #5 and #6?
http://news.yahoo.com/dyes-derived-crude-oil-mac-n-cheese-special-143250352.html
those dyes are toxic and derived from crude oil
Have you ever wondered how Kraft Macaroni and Cheese gets its electric orange-yellow glow? Let us introduce you to Yellow Dye #5 and Yellow Dye #6, two potentially harmful chemicals used in the North American versions of Kraft's macaroni products.
Also known as Tartrazine and Sunset Yellow respectively, these dyes are conspicuously absent from Kraft's U.K. versions of Macaroni and Cheese. Why? Because the Brits revolted over their potentially harmful side-effects, demanding the company remove them. And now, two famous food bloggers are leading the charge to pressure Kraft into doing the same for its North American customers.
Vani Hari of Food Babe and Lisa Leake of 100 Days of Real Food recently launched a Change.org petition insisting Kraft remove Yellow Dye #5 and #6 from this childhood staple.
Their petition has already garnered almost a quarter of a million signatures.
According to the campaign, both dyes are man-made products derived from petroleum, a crude oil. They’ve already been banned in countries like Norway and Austria and are linked to a host of disturbing side-effects like asthma and migraines, in addition to hyperactivity and learning impairments in children.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest reports that #5 and #6 are also tainted with known carcinogens.
In their video, Hari and Leake taste-tested the U.K. and U.S. versions and found them to be virtually the same. So it seems that Kraft found a safer way to elicit that orange-yellow glow and cheesy taste without using these chemicals for their British consumers, but not for their American ones.
While it's true that no one is forced to buy Mac 'N Cheese, and no one should expect it to be a "health food," if the company has already discovered a way to recreate an authentic taste and appearance with safer ingredients, doesn't corporate responsibility dictate that they do so? And aren't the concerns of its American customers just as important as their British counterparts?
In response to the campaign, a Kraft released this public statement, “The safety and quality of our products is our highest priority and we take consumer concerns very seriously,” she said. “We carefully follow the laws and regulations in the countries where our products are sold. So in the U.S., we only use colors that are approved and deemed safe for food use by the FDA.”
Let's take a closer look at that: First, FDA approval isn't necessarily a stamp of safety. According to Hari and Leake's recent appearance on the Dr. Oz Show, there are over 91 artificial dyes previously used in foods and cosmetics that were at one point "FDA-approved" but are now banned.
Second, in the U.K's Mac and Cheese products, dyes #5 and #6 were easily replaced with paprika and beta carotene, two natural substances that don't alter the look or taste of the food. Their only caveat: they're more expensive to use.
Whatever Kraft's reasoning, it should take heed—online petitions are powerful weapons that can yield tremendous results in altering our food-system landscape. Recently, the makers of Gatorade acquiesced to a Change.org petition started by a 16-year-old student to nix brominated vegetable oil from the makeup of its citrus-flavored drinks.
In addition to the Change.org campaign and its overwhelming press coverage on shows like NBC andCNN, consumers have also taken to the product's Facebook page, leaving comments demanding that Kraft change its formula.
The food giant can dig in its heels all it wants, but considering the online popularity of bloggers Hari and Leake, and the determination of American moms to serve their kids healthier foods, it appears that Kraft is in for quite a fight. Buckle up.
Would you buy foods made with Yellow Dye #5 and #6?
http://news.yahoo.com/dyes-derived-crude-oil-mac-n-cheese-special-143250352.html
