Artificial Dyes in Kids Food — What the FDA Is Doing About It and Why Little Baker Kids Never Used Them
Artificial Dyes in Kids Food — What the FDA Is Doing About It and Why Little Baker Kids Never Used Them
If you have been following the news lately you already know something is changing.
On April 22 2025 the FDA and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced plans to phase out eight petroleum based synthetic food dyes from the American food supply by the end of 2026. Bake Me Healthy
The dyes targeted include some of the most commonly used artificial colors in American food products. Red 40. Yellow 5. Yellow 6. Blue 1. Blue 2. Green 3. Advanceable ABA
These are not obscure ingredients. The phase out will impact thousands of commonly purchased food products across the United States including candy, cereal, soda, and baked goods. The Vegan Knife, LLC
Including — it is worth noting — toy oven mixes.
Here is everything you need to know. And why Little Baker Kids has never had anything to worry about.
What Are Artificial Food Dyes
Artificial food dyes are synthetic color additives used to make food look more visually appealing. They have been used in American food products for decades.
Many dyes are petroleum based and made through chemical processes. They appear in many different types of foods including candies, ice cream, frozen desserts, crackers, chips, energy bars, cereals, beverages and more. Spokin
They are also in toy oven mixes. Including the ones that came in the box your child just unwrapped.
What the Research Says About Artificial Dyes and Children
The scientific conversation around artificial dyes and children has been building for years. FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary stated that for the last 50 years American children have increasingly been living in a toxic soup of synthetic chemicals. Bake Me Healthy
A 2012 study found artificial food coloring is not a major cause of ADHD but can affect children whether or not they are diagnosed with the condition. A 2022 analysis from the California Environmental Protection Agency and two California universities found that there may be an association between synthetic food dyes and behavioral issues even in children without a diagnosed behavioral disorder. Spokin
When California's Environmental Protection Agency reviewed the body of research on synthetic dyes back in 2021 it found evidence that the dyes consumed in food can negatively impact children's behavior. ExtraWhiteGold
The science is not settled. Experts acknowledge the research is still developing. The research on the safety of these dyes is mixed although growing evidence indicates an association between artificial dyes and behavioral and cognitive issues. Celiac Mama
But here is the question that matters for your family.
Why wait for settled science when you can simply choose products that do not contain them?
What the FDA Is Actually Doing
The FDA's announcement does not mean a ban on all artificial food coloring nor does it mean an immediate ban on any synthetic food dyes. Celiac Mama
The effort is essentially voluntary. The Trump administration is working to strip out eight artificial food dyes from the food supply by 2026 but the phase out is not a mandate. Advanceable ABA
There is no mandate for the food industry to comply with the phase out of the six synthetic colorants but Kennedy said the industry has voluntarily agreed. ExtraWhiteGold
What this means practically: the largest food companies in America are being asked — not required — to remove artificial dyes from their products by the end of 2026. Some will comply quickly. Some will move slowly. Some will wait and see.
In the meantime those dyes are still in thousands of products your child eats today.
Including — if you are using the standard mixes — in their toy oven.
What Is in the Standard Easy Bake Oven Mixes
The standard Hasbro Easy Bake oven mixes contain artificial flavors and artificial colors in addition to wheat, milk, eggs, soy, peanuts, and tree nuts.
The rainbow sprinkles included in some packs use synthetic dyes to achieve their color. The frostings. The cake mixes themselves.
Your child is baking with petroleum based synthetic color additives. In their toy. In a product marketed specifically for children.
Little Baker Kids Has Never Used Artificial Dyes
Not because the FDA asked us to remove them.
Not because of the 2025 announcement.
Not because of any regulation or mandate or voluntary industry agreement.
Because we built Little Baker Kids on the principle that every ingredient in every mix should be something you recognize, something you trust, and something you feel good about your child eating.
Artificial dyes do not meet that standard. They never did. They were never part of a single Little Baker Kids mix.
Every mix we make is completely free from artificial dyes. Every color in every product comes from natural sources. Our rainbow sprinkles — made with Supernatural Brand natural color — get their color from beet juice, turmeric, spirulina, and annatto. Real ingredients. Real color. Nothing petroleum based.
When the rest of the industry spends the next two years reformulating to catch up — we will already be exactly where we have always been.
Ahead.
What This Means for Your Family Right Now
You do not have to wait for 2026. You do not have to watch the food industry slowly comply with a voluntary agreement. You do not have to keep reading labels and hoping your child's favorite products make the switch.
Little Baker Kids is already there.
Every mix. Every collection. Every topping. Every sprinkle.
No artificial dyes. No petroleum based colors. No synthetic additives.
Just clean ingredients that do exactly what food is supposed to do — taste good and make your child proud of what they made.
The Bigger Picture
The conversation happening in Washington right now is long overdue. Parents have been asking these questions about their children's food for years. The research has been building. The concern has been real.
Little Baker Kids was built by a parent who asked those questions and decided not to wait for the answer.
Every mix we make is the answer we gave ourselves.
Clean. Real. Safe. Delicious.
For every child at every table.
Shop at littlebakerkids.com. Every mix is artificial dye free. Every flavor. Every collection. Always has been. Always will be.