Letters to the Editor: FDA should prioritize oversight of widely used food additives rather than abandoned ones

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To the editor : The Food and Drug Administration’s proposal to formally ban Orange B, a synthetic food dye not used for decades, may seem largely symbolic ( “FDA proposes ban on Orange B, a food dye not used for decades,” Sept. 17), yet it highlights a broader issue: the need for more meaningful oversight of food additives. While removing a long-obsolete dye is positive, the agency’s focus might be better spent on dyes and chemicals still prevalent in the food supply that pose genuine health risks. For example, the widely used food dye Red No. 3 was only recently banned 35 years after it was initially linked to cancer.

Regulatory updates should prioritize protecting public