For many of us, Jell-O was a childhood staple, rounding out school lunches and Friday-night dinners for decades. Its bright colors, kid-friendly flavors, and ease of preparation made it the ideal dessert for parents on a time crunch.
That convenience and visual appeal helped make Jell-O a household name, but consumer attitudes towards processed foods have changed drastically in recent years. Over time, the dessert’s signature neon colors and ultra-sweet flavors have started to fall out of step with modern consumer tastes.
Facing increasing concerns around food dyes and artificial sweeteners, legacy brands are under pressure to reinvent themselves as healthier, cleaner versions of nostalgic favorites. To that end, Jell-O recently revealed it would be making one of the biggest ingredient changes in the brand’s 130-year history.
Jell-O unveils new Simply line
In May, Jell-O confirmed the launch of Jell-O Simply, a new line of Jell-O mixes without FD&C colors or artificial sweeteners.
The new recipe is made with real fruit juice, and contains 25% less sugar than the brand’s standard ready-to-eat line. What hasn’t changed? The taste, texture, and colors the brand has become known for.
“We know families are looking for treats that strike the right balance between great taste and ingredients they can feel good about — and they don’t want to sacrifice the brands they know and love to get there,” Kraft Heinz Head of Marketing, Desserts Kathryn O’Brien said in a statement.
“JELL-O Simply delivers everything people love about JELL-O,” she continued. “It’s a meaningful evolution for the brand and an important milestone in Kraft Heinz’s broader modernization journey.”
The Jell-O Simply range includes both ready-to-eat products and mixes:
- Jell-O Simply read-to-eat four-packs are on store shelves now. Priced at $3.99, they come in three flavors: Orange, Raspberry Lemonade, and Blueberry.
- Jell-O Simply gelatin and instant pudding mixes will launch in August 2026. Priced at $2.24 per box, they come in four flavors: Vanilla, Chocolate, Banana, and Strawberry.
Source: Kraft Heinz
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Kraft Heinz is eliminating artificial dyes
Artificial food dyes have come under increased scrutiny in recent years amid concerns about potential behavioral and health effects, particularly on children.
In April 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a plan to phase out all synthetic dyes from the American food supply.
In response, dozens of brands and grocers have announced their own plans to do away with artificial elements.
Last summer, Kraft Heinz was among the first companies to release this type of pledge, saying it would remove all FD&C colors from its U.S. products by the end of 2027 and would not launch any new products containing FD&C colors effective immediately.
“As a food company with a 150+ year heritage, we are continuously evolving our recipes, products, and portfolio to deliver superiority to consumers and customers,” Pedro Navio, North America president at Kraft Heinz, said at the time. “The vast majority of our products use natural or no colors, and we’ve been on a journey to reduce our use of FD&C colors across the remainder of our portfolio.”
A number of Kraft Heinz products that did contain FD&C colors have already been reformulated, including boxed Kraft Mac & Cheese and Crystal Light drink mixes.
Why removing artificial dyes is harder than it sounds
Concern over artificial food dyes is a fairly common consumer concern.
Nearly three-quarters (72%) of Americans say they are at least somewhat concerned about the use of artificial dyes in food, according to a survey conducted by Consumer Reports. Another 66% say they believe that food companies should be required to stop using artificial dyes altogether.
However, the problem food companies and manufacturers are up against is that many consumers don’t want to see a visual difference in the reformulated products.
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“People think food tastes better if it’s brightly colored,” Marion Nestle, a public health nutritionist who’s tracked research on food dyes, told NPR. “Brighter colors are perceived as tasting better, whether the taste changes or not.”
Childhood snacks like Jell-O face a particularly uphill battle in this arena. Consumers usually form nostalgic memories and deep emotional connections with these foods, and are therefore more likely to respond negatively to major changes in the look, feel, and taste of the products.
As Kraft Heinz continues to revamp its products by eliminating those FD&C dyes, it has to make certain their look and feel remains the same. Otherwise, it risks alienating its existing consumer base and drawing in that next generation of devotees.
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