FDA's Front-of-Package Nutrition Box Is Still Not Final
The FDA projected a final front-of-package labeling rule for spring 2026. It has not arrived. What the proposed Nutrition Info box shows, and what it leaves out.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Blog
Ingredient education for real labels
Practical guides and ingredient reviews that help you understand food and personal-care labels before you scan them with Aurascan.
Cluster: Food Regulation News
FDA Puts Caffeine Labeling on Its 2026 Agenda: What Cans Hide
The FDA listed caffeine-content labeling guidance as a 2026 priority. Today the amount is voluntary. What a Monster or Celsius can tells you, and what it does not.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Red 3 Has Four Months Left in U.S. Food: What to Check
FDA's Red 3 revocation hits food on Jan 15, 2027. Where erythrosine still shows up (candy, frosting, cherries), what the label says, and why older stock may linger.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
New York's Food Chemical Disclosure Act Awaits Hochul
New York passed a bill banning Red 3, potassium bromate and propylparaben and making GRAS safety data public. Hochul has until Dec 31. What it would change on labels.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Texas' 44-Ingredient Warning Label Is Paused: What's Next
Texas SB 25 would put a warning on foods with any of 44 ingredients (dyes, BHT, bromate) from Jan 1, 2027. A federal court paused it. Who it covers, what to watch.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
California's Non-Ultraprocessed Seal: Newsom Decides by Sept 30
California passed AB 2244 to create a voluntary 'Non-Ultraprocessed Certified' seal. What would qualify, what would not, and what happens after Newsom's Sept 30 deadline.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
The Dye Swap Has a Supply Problem: Natural Colors
Most natural food colors are grown and imported, take 12-24 months to validate, and could jump in price as brands drop synthetic dyes by 2027. What that means for labels.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
FDA Dye Tracker Now Says End of 2027: Who's Done
The FDA's dye pledge tracker (Sept 10, 2026) now targets end of 2027 for Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 and three more. Which brands report Complete, which are still working.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
General Mills Cereals Are Dye-Free: What's Left to Do
General Mills says every U.S. cereal is now free of certified dyes (Aug 27, 2026), yet the FDA tracker still lists it 'In progress.' What remains and what to look for.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
EFSA Clears the Aspartame-Acesulfame Salt (E 962)
EFSA's Sept 10, 2026 re-evaluation found no safety concern for the aspartame-acesulfame salt (E 962) and kept both ADIs. What it means on US labels.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
EWG Checked 12 Fast-Food Menus: Dyes on All but Two
EWG's September 2026 review of 12 fast-food menus found synthetic dyes everywhere except Chipotle and Subway, mostly in drinks. What it means and what to check.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
In-N-Out Is on the FDA Dye Tracker: What Changed
FDA's dye pledge tracker (updated Sept 10, 2026) lists In-N-Out as done: Red 40 out of the strawberry shake and pink lemonade. What replaced it, what's next.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
EFSA's First Additive Monitoring Report: Tartrazine Exposure
EFSA's first pilot EU monitoring report measured real dietary exposure to tartrazine (E102), Ponceau 4R and Green S across 22 countries. What it found for shoppers.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
US to Define 'Ultra-Processed Food': What the Proposal Means
HHS and USDA sent the first federal definition of ultra-processed food to OMB on August 10, 2026. What is known, what it could change, and what it will not do.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
FDA Revokes Orange B: The Sausage-Casing Dye Nobody Used
The FDA's July 23, 2026 order removing Orange B from the color additive rules took effect September 8, 2026. What changed, why, and what shoppers will notice.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Snacks
5 Lunchbox Snacks Scanned: String Cheese to Fig Bars
Frigo string cheese, Dole pineapple juice, Stacy's pita chips, Nature's Bakery fig bars and SkinnyDipped almonds, scanned: enriched flour, added sugars and allergens.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
5 Grocery Staples With the Shortest Labels, Scanned
Fage yogurt, SkinnyPop, Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Bean, Frigo string cheese and Dole pineapple juice have two to five ingredients each. Why short is not the same as healthy.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
5 Chips People Scan Most, and What Their Labels Say
Doritos, Pringles Hot Honey, Baked Lay's, Stacy's pita chips and SkinnyPop, scanned line by line: dyes, MSG, enriched flour, added sugar and one three-ingredient bag.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Baked Lay's vs Doritos: Is the Baked Chip's Label Cleaner?
'Baked' describes the oven, not the ingredients. Lay's Oven Baked Original vs Doritos Nacho Cheese, line by line: oils, added sugar, dyes, MSG and flavor enhancers.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
6 Snacks People Scan Most, and What Their Labels Say
Doritos, Pringles Hot Honey, Lay's Baked, Stacy's pita chips, SkinnyPop and SkinnyDipped almonds: what each real label says, with a scan card for every one.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Protein Bars
Nature's Bakery Fig Bar vs KIND: Which Bar Label Is Cleaner?
A whole-wheat fig bar against a peanut protein bar: several added sugars vs one, glycerin and chicory fiber, palm kernel oil, and wheat vs peanut allergens, compared.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Barebells vs KIND: Which Protein Bar Has the Cleaner Label?
Barebells vs KIND from the real labels: dairy isolates vs nuts, maltitol and sucralose vs sugar and honey, polydextrose vs chicory fiber. Guess the cleaner bar.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Diet Soda
Sprite vs Fresca: Sugar, Sweeteners and Preservatives
Sprite is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup; Fresca uses aspartame and acesulfame potassium. Both caffeine-free and dye-free. The two cans, line by line.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
The 5 Sodas People Scan Most: Sweeteners, Acids and Colors
Diet Coke, Sprite, Fanta Orange, Fanta Pineapple and Fresca, label by label: which sweetener, acid, dye and preservative each one uses and what regulators say.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Mountain Dew Zero Sugar vs Diet: Caffeine and Sweeteners
Mountain Dew Zero Sugar has more caffeine than Diet Mountain Dew; both use aspartame, Ace-K and sucralose plus Yellow 5. Ingredients, PKU warning and taste compared.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Product Spotlights
Are Friendly's Orange Cream Bars Clean? Every Ingredient, Scanned
Friendly's Orange Cream bars stack two sweeteners, four gums, carrageenan and two certified dyes (Red 40, Yellow 6). What each does, and where the dye phase-out stands.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Dole 100% Pineapple Juice Clean? The Label, Scanned
Dole 100% Pineapple Juice adds no sugar, yet a glass carries soda-level sugar. What "100% juice" and "from concentrate" mean under FDA rules, and why vitamins are added.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Fage Total 0% Clean? A Two-Line Yogurt Label, Scanned
Fage Total 0% lists skimmed milk and five live cultures, nothing else. Why strained yogurt needs no thickeners, and what to watch in flavored tubs.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Are Pringles Hot Honey Clean? Every Ingredient, Scanned
Pringles Hot Honey start as a dough of dried potatoes, corn flour, rice flour and wheat starch, then add sugar, honey powder and yeast extract. Each one explained.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Sprite Clean? Every Ingredient in the Can, Scanned
Sprite has six ingredients: carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural flavors, sodium citrate and sodium benzoate. What each does, per the FDA.
9/15/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Core Power Clean? Every Ingredient in the Shake, Scanned
Core Power Chocolate is ultrafiltered milk plus three stabilizers, three sweeteners and lactase. Carrageenan, cellulose gum, stevia, sucralose and Ace-K explained.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Are Doritos Clean? Every Nacho Cheese Ingredient, Scanned
Doritos Nacho Cheese lists MSG, three certified dyes, two flavor enhancers and several milk ingredients. What each does, and what the FDA dye tracker says.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Celsius Peach Vibe Clean? Every Ingredient, Scanned
Celsius Sparkling Peach Vibe is sugar-free and vitamin-fortified, but the label carries sucralose, a caffeine blend and vegetable-juice color. Every ingredient explained.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Monster Energy Clean? Every Ingredient in the Can, Scanned
Monster Energy lists over twenty ingredients: sugar, glucose, taurine, ginseng, two preservatives, sucralose and caffeine. What each one does and what regulators say.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is the KIND Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Bar Clean? Scanned
We scanned every ingredient in the KIND Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate bar: three sweeteners, palm kernel oil, soy isolate, chicory fiber. What each one does.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Red Bull Clean? Every Ingredient in the Can, Scanned
Carbonated water, 27 g of sugar, 80 mg of caffeine, synthetic taurine, B vitamins, flavors and colors: what each does, what regulators say, and the scan.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Diet Coke, Scanned: What Every Ingredient Actually Does
Carbonated water, caramel color, aspartame, phosphoric acid, potassium benzoate, natural flavors, citric acid: what each does, what regulators say, and the scan.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Bean Clean? Five Ingredients, Scanned
Cream, skim milk, cane sugar, egg yolks, vanilla bean. What each does, why a short label still means real fat and sugar, and what the scan shows.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Ice Cream
5 Ice Creams Scanned: Five Ingredients vs Twenty
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Bean and Chocolate, two Tillamook cartons and Friendly's Orange Cream bars, scanned: stabilizers, corn syrup, colors and cookie-dough inclusions.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Protein Snacks
5 High-Protein Products Scanned: Fage to Barebells
Fage 0% yogurt, Core Power shake, Ryse protein powder, Barebells and KIND bars, scanned: carrageenan, maltitol, sucralose, acesulfame K and gums explained.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Energy Drinks
Monster vs Red Bull: Caffeine, Sweeteners and Preservatives
Monster Energy and Red Bull share taurine, B vitamins and caffeine, but only one lists preservatives and sucralose. A label-by-label comparison of the two cans.
9/14/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Red Bull vs Celsius: Caffeine, Sweeteners, and Ingredients
Red Bull vs Celsius from the real labels: 80 mg vs 200 mg caffeine, sugar vs sucralose, taurine, B vitamins and botanicals. Guess the cleaner can, then see the scan.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Ingredient Safety
Is Soy Lecithin Safe? Uses, Allergy Facts, and Label Names
Learn what soy lecithin is, why it is added to chocolate and protein bars, its FDA and EFSA safety status, and how it affects people with soy allergies.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Taurine Safe? Energy Drinks, EFSA Limits, and Labels
Learn what taurine is, why it appears in energy drinks, how it is manufactured, its regulatory safety status under EFSA and FDA, and who should limit intake.
9/13/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Sweeteners
Added Sugar Has Dozens of Label Names: The Ones to Know
The names added sugar hides under on labels, from corn syrup to fruit juice concentrate, how 'sugar splitting' works, and what the FDA Added Sugars line counts.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Allulose vs Erythritol: Which Sugar Substitute Is Better?
Allulose bakes like sugar; erythritol is cheaper and EU-approved. Calories, blood sugar, digestion, the 2023 heart study, and label names compared.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is Maltodextrin Bad for You? Blood Sugar, Gluten, and Labels
Maltodextrin is in sports drinks, chips and sugar packets. What it does to blood sugar, whether wheat-derived versions are gluten-free, the FDA status, and label names.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Cluster: Preservatives
Is Propylene Glycol (E1520) Safe? Food Uses, Cats, and Labels
Propylene glycol carries flavors and keeps food moist. FDA and EFSA limits, why it is not antifreeze, the Fireball recall, cat toxicity, and label names.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
What Is Xanthan Gum? Uses, Safety, Gut Health, and Labels
Learn what xanthan gum is, why it is added to food and cosmetics, how it affects gut health, key safety regulations, and who should avoid it.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Is BHT (E321) Safe? Uses, Limits, FDA Review, and Labels
BHT (E321) keeps cereal and chips from going rancid. FDA and EFSA limits, the IARC Group 3 rating, the 2026 FDA reassessment, and how to spot it on labels.
9/11/2026 · Chris Carrillo
Label-reading intel, weekly.
What changed on food labels this week — bans, recalls, and new guides.