US healthy snack brand Kind is to discontinue its Fruit Bites product, blaming American kids’ preference for foods coloured with artificial dyes.
The New York business, known for its cereal bars, entered the country’s fruit snacks category back in August 2017, saying Fruit Bites were one of the only snacks of its type made without synthetic dyes. They are made using just fruit and contain no added sugar.
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Now, effectively admitting the product’s failure to engage with consumers, Kind said it is embarking on a “mission to educate people on synthetic dye consumption”.
It said it not only hopes to highlight the excessive use of synthetic dyes in obvious culprits – like cereals and sugary beverages – but also in unexpected, seemingly-healthy foods such as fruit snacks, yogurt and apple sauce.
Kind claims synthetic dyes are now found in 95% of fruit snacks.
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“The consumption of dyes increased more than five-fold since the 1950s, resulting in 43% of foods marketed to children now containing synthetic dyes. Kind is concerned that American kids are now accustomed to eating foods that are artificially colourful and less likely to try and enjoy foods that are naturally coloured,” it said.
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By GlobalDataDaniel Lubetzky, founder and executive chairman of Kind, said: “When we launched Kind Fruit Bites, we were unwavering in our decision to not use synthetic dyes in an effort to elevate the current fruit snacks category. Our unsettling discovery of the issue at hand compelled us to act and educate parents on the use of dyes in their kids’ foods so that they can make more informed eating decisions.”
Although the company has decided to remove its Fruit Bites product from shelves, it said it will continue to offer the Strawberry Apple Cherry, Cherry Apple, and Mango Pineapple Apple variants online.
Confectionery giant Mars has a minority stake in Kind.
