M&M’s Goes Dye-Free In August As Mars Marks 85th Anniversary With MAHA-Compliant Candy, Spirulina Proves Too Costly
According to NewsNation, M&M’s will launch its first artificial dye-free candies in August, timed to the brand’s 85th anniversary, but blue and brown pieces will not make the cut.
Mars confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that natural sources like beets and turmeric successfully replicated red and yellow, but blue proved far harder.
The company relied on spirulina, a blue-green algae extract that costs over $100 per pound in concentrated form and gums up factory machinery like “dental plaque.” Mars considered a three-color mix of red, orange and yellow but rejected it because executives felt “the sunset vibes were too strong.”
“It was a daunting situation,” said Anton Vincent, president of Mars Snacking North America. “You’re messing with an 85-year-old icon.”
This matters because Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pressured food companies nationwide to drop artificial dyes, with Nestlé already fully compliant and Texas investigating Mars over its earlier 2016 dye pledge that was later reversed.
A candy brand spent millions chasing the color blue, and still came up short. That is how seriously this shift is being taken. Check out our previous coverage of food policy and consumer brands here.
