Could Kraft Dinner, one of the most iconic Canadian food items, lose its unnatural orange glow?
Two food bloggers, Lisa Leake and Vani Hari, have organized a petition to remove two dyes from the North American version of Kraft Dinner. They noted that the U.K. version doesn't contain Yellow 5 and Yellow 6.
The bloggers say that the dyes are carcinogenic, linked to hyperactivity in children and can cause other long-term health problems.
"These unnecessary — yet potentially harmful — dyes are not in Kraft Macaroni and Cheese in other countries, including the U.K., because they were removed due to consumer outcry. Kraft reformulated their product for the U.K., but not for their fellow American citizens," they write. They've also posted a YouTube video explaining their petition, you can watch it below.
As of Wednesday, the petition has more than 280,000 signatures. CTV reports that more than 25,000 Canadians have signed on.
Kraft responded to the petition saying that its customers don't want changes in a product as iconic as KD.
A Kraft spokeswoman also told the National Post that the dyes have been deemed safe by the FDA, Health Canada and the European Food Safety Authority.
The Post's Joe O'Connor also points out that KD's iconic nature makes it almost untouchable. "if you are concerned — don’t buy it. But don’t go messing around with it either. KD is but a small comfort, a taste that reminds Canadians of home," he writes.
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