Why do American snack foods use so many artificial colourings?

Question

My local supermarket was selling Takis so I thought I'd give them a try, got the feugo and the blue heat. Both taste fine, neither are as spicy as the packaging would suggest but why the heck do they have to be electric blue and hot red? It adds absolutely nothing to them except an annoying stain on your fingers and tongue (not to mention the red 40 potential side effects 😀)

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

I heard a radio program from the 1940s one time and they had all these Kraft commercials such as Parkay margarine and it was just lie, lie, lie (a 20 year old Betty White did many of the ads), they were saying what a nutritional food it was and you should rush home and have it on crackers ⁉️ and it's full of vitamin A (because vitamin A was a waste product of the manufacturing of the margarine), and that margarine gave you energy for the day. If that was even true you'd have to eat a pound of margarine to get any nutrients at all, when everyone uses a little square.

Also for some reason because of the war margarine wasn't allowed to be yellow like butter so after the war they would sell these little packets or something where you mix it in to the Parkay margarine to make it yellow, thus (possibly) the beginning of artificial food coloring. Also you couldn't always buy it, so (for example) if you got margarine on a Tuesday you might have to wait 2 weeks until a Friday to be able to find it again.

Also interesting, the radio program was written by the grandfather of Joss Whedon who did Agents of Shield.

KittyKat90210 · Accepted Answer

It's all about marketing and catching the consumer's eye. Honestly I think it's quite dumb. It's like the supermarket cakes they sell here with the electric blue or hot pink frosting. Similar to like snack foods, I think they look pretty gross and wouldn't want to put all those chemicals and artificial colors in my body!

RingOfFire · Accepted Answer

It's not just Red 40, many of the other artificial colorings can also have bad effects on health. Many of them are derived from petroleum so you can imagine it probably is not a good idea to eat any more than you would drink the oil in your car engine.

On the other hand, in moderation the amount ingested probably does he know harm. I think the fear mongering is overdone.

Nonetheless I think they can be taken out of the food supply by changing recipes and using natural colorings and as you said not much would be lost.

It got a little out of hand after decades of use of these things. Primarily it was too impress kids so it would look cute for their consumption in cereals and candies and things that appeal to kids.

Of course since kids are smaller it probably takes smaller amounts of these harmful ingredients to harm them so unfortunately it was exactly the wrong group of people they were aimed at.

I'm not convinced that these things have such a serious effect in the quantities that 99.99999% of people consume them. But why not use something different and safer and get rid of them anyway.

DryGermanGuy · Accepted Answer

Because US-American food regulations are ridiculously lenient and flimsy. So, unless someone can prove actual health risks (!), the manufacturers will use the cheapest ingredients and additives possible. In Europe, food companies have to prove the safety of their ingredients. I pointed out how much better that system is for consumers and was told that was a „nanny state“ and that „Americans don’t need that“. 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

James The Foodie · Accepted Answer

American snack foods often use artificial colorings to make them visually appealing, capturing attention with vibrant hues. These colors can enhance the overall eating experience, as they create a fun and engaging visual aspect that appeals to consumers, especially kids. In a competitive market, standout colors can help products differentiate themselves on the shelves. I remember trying Takis in a bustling NYC street market; that vivid color drew me in, though the spicy kick was what kept me reaching for more! 🎨

2

midnightmoon05 · Answer

A way to control the way how one functions in life. Americans are fat and unhealthy.

I grew up in a small village… ate basic farm foods (veggies and lake fish… very little meat) no artificial ingredients. So I was used to natural taste of real food.
at 10, we came to the US. I had to eat the school food. It was gross… but I did.

now that I am looking at the food sold in the US, such as “chocolate bars” there is no chocolate.

why they do all these… cheaper to make it to become addicted. It has worked well for 30-40 years. As Americans get more sick. They go on meds. Corporate greed.

wr have been traveling around the world for months and we are regular and healthier lol… no rushes and bumps on our faces… once we return to the US…we don’t feel so well… unless we are very very strict on our diet.

so, you get what I’m saying… you can tell it’s not good for you.

here… hope things will change… but it will take time.
meanwhile… we will retire in other countries

ChicoFromThe305 · Answer

You actually liked the excessive sodium? I always found them way too salty, although why they are so full of color is beyond me, if they allowed it in your country tho that must mean they took out the red 40 so perhaps it's used with another form of dye now

Anonymous · Answer

Cheaper and addictive. Also its like when a drug dealer with 10kgs of coke turns it into 20kg of cole by cutting it with other substances.

Bread is the same. Bread is basically dough made out of grain flour, yeast and water baked in an oven. But if you look at the ingredients on any loaf there is all these different ingredients like gluten, sodium etc.

ImalwaysrightOK · Answer

True. It's the food industry lobby and a weak FDA that allowed this for decades. I'm not usually for government getting involved, but feeding children toxic chemicals to make it more appealing visually rather than keeping those colors natural is ridiculous and hopefully MAHA and RFK jr can get something done.

Friendlybro79 · Answer

I have no idea and it's why I try not to eat garbage food that is made here. The same companies that made cigarettes (Philip Morris for ex) that used to own and use the same scientists that helped make cigarettes so addictive to make some of our favorite snacks. They sold it off to Heinz but, I believe they profit when we consume more. So artificial foods... I try to avoid. I can't always but do a decent job.

Kaneki05 · Answer

Because it looks cool! So wish UK would allow such things so we could get Mountain Dew many flavors and other drinks. It's not like I care if Mountain Dew is healthy to drink if I did then I wouldn't want to drink it in the first place smh.

CupcakeTheDestroyer · Answer

Because it’s cheaper than going with more organic options. A lot of American food standards are cut in the name of production cost without any thought to how it might affect their consumers

AngryCarl2 · Answer

I hate telling people what to do but if you're eating takis you need to reassess your diet. They are high in calories but have no nutritional value. You might as well just sign up for obesity and type 2 diabetes.

molonski2 · Answer

The artificial element , addings etc , you hit the nail on the head extremely dangerous, and offer absolutely zero benefit.

NoDecision · Answer

To make as many colorful delicacies as possible to attract children to unhealthy snacks. 😫

cora1 · Answer

Just goes to show people prefer fake things.

DonaldDarko · Answer

It makes money. Corporations will do what ever makes them money even if people die.

loveslongnails · Answer

Someone in marketing thought the colors would be more attractive, plus there's big money in the USA in making and keeping people ill.

DCVsMarvel2 · Answer

dont know, don't care. as long as it keeps me fed. I don't care whats in it. Would you rather starve?

LiamS95 · Answer

What they do in that regard in the US is completely outlawed in Canada

Amur8711 · Answer

Because company's were cheap and there where no health regulations for it. That's going to change in the next 2 years, because of MAHA movement.

slatyb · Answer

Those are made in Mexico, not the United States.

exitseven · Answer

Everybody likes colorful food I guess.

jahaims · Answer

To poison you for a profit

Abdulw · Answer

Wouldn't know I'd not yet visit usa

msc545 · Answer

It makes them more attractive to children.

RedInnocent69 · Answer

We like bright shiny things

seeyounexttuesday · Answer

Not for long thanks to RFK

bananathunder · Answer

to make it look pretty...

Panthero80 · Answer

They are getting rid of some of them.

Anonymous · Answer

I guess many Americans like coloured food.

Why do American snack foods use so many artificial colourings?

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