Health Canada sees no human risk to FDA-banned dye

Health Canada says a synthetic dye newly banned from the U.S. food supply does not pose a health risk to the general population in Canada.

The federal agency says it won’t echo a ban by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration unless new information comes to light about the additive known as Red 3.

Health Canada says it reviewed a safety evaluation conducted by a joint committee for the United Nations and World Health Organization in 2018.

The joint UN/WHO committee looked at studies that involved humans and animals, and found no safety concerns for the dye as a food additive.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned the dye over potential cancer risk, noting two studies found it caused cancer in lab rats with a “rat-specific hormonal mechanism” that does not exist in humans.

The FDA says the measure was a “matter of law” because a legal provision requires it to ban food additives found to cause cancer in humans or animals.

Health Canada says that if new scientific data reveals a human health risk to using the dye in food or drugs, it will take action.

That includes, if necessary, “no longer permitting it to be used as a colouring agent in food and drugs.”

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