While campaigning with President-elect Donald Trump, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. questioned vaccine safety, fluoride in water and other health issues and vowed to “Make America Healthy Again.” Now there’s something else in Kennedy’s spotlight: a shiny, O-ringed cereal that has filled children’s breakfast bowls for generations.

Kennedy, a fierce critic of the federal government’s handling of children’s health, including rising childhood obesity rates, falsely claimed that Froot Loops sold in Canada contained only a few ingredients compared to those sold in the United States.

Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for The Washington Post’s most important and interesting stories.

“Why do we have 18 or 19 component Froot Loops in this country and when you go to Canada you have two or three?” he said while criticizing the Food and Drug Administration in an interview with MSNBC’s Vaughn Hillyard last week.

Kennedy, who is known for debunking medical claims, was wrong about the number of similar ingredients in Canadian and American Froot Loops: 17 and 16, respectively. The biggest difference is the dyes, known as Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, and Blue 1 in the American version. Canadian authorities limit the use of these dyes.

After this article was published, Kennedy’s spokeswoman, Stefanie Spear, said in an MSNBC interview that she addressed the differences in food dyes in the American and Canadian versions of the cereal.

“We can all unite behind the goal of making American food the healthiest and most nutritious food on Earth,” Spear said in a statement.

Carol Culhane, whose Toronto-based company International Food Focus Limited advises manufacturers on how to comply with the regulations, confirmed that Canadian health officials are limiting the use of food dyes, such as the four dyes in the American version of Froot Loops. American-made foods are generally much brighter than those in the Great White North, he said.

Culhane said last month that Canadian health officials investigated the use of food coloring and found no health hazards. On Friday, the Canadian government announced plans to further regulate acceptable levels of food dyes and other additives.

“They’ve been looking at this for about 14, 15 years, so this isn’t something that’s the result of social media pressure,” Culhane said.

Kennedy’s comparison about grains is part of a larger “Make America Healthy Again” campaign that has surprised and worried health leaders as they prepare for a potential role in government.

Weeks earlier, Kennedy had falsely told conservative podcast host Steve Gruber that food dyes cause tumors and behavioral problems in children.

“When you look at a pack of Froot Loops in this country, they are all chemical dyes. “Yellow, blue and red dyes are poison,” Kennedy said. “In Canada, across the border, Froot Loops are a different colour; all colored with vegetable oils. Same company. Kellogg’s knows how to create safer products that don’t contain chemicals.”

The FDA website says approved artificial food dyes are safe: “The totality of scientific evidence shows that most children do not experience any adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives, although some evidence suggests that some children may be sensitive to them.”

Many countries, including Europe, do not ban these artificial dyes, but require companies to warn customers about their presence by placing labels on their products.

“This seems to be enough to discourage their use,” said Marion Nestle, former chair of New York University’s nutrition and food studies program.

The Canadian version of Froot Loops uses natural coloring: red from annatto comes from achiote seeds; yellow-orange from turmeric; Blue obtained from the concentrated juice of the huito tree, which grows in tropical regions.

The artificial dyes used in the American version give the cereal a neon glow; manufacturer Kellogg’s says its U.S. customers prefer it. “Consumer preferences for colors from artificial sources in food vary widely across markets, particularly grains,” Kellogg’s said in an unsigned statement from its public information department. “For example, our cereal recipes that use natural color alternatives are better received in the Canadian market than in the U.S.”

Nestle said Kellogg’s and other cereal makers often blame the customer for regulations that require different versions for other markets.

“Their top priority is shareholder profits,” he said.

It’s hard to say exactly what artificial dyes do to the human body because, according to Nestle, even eating a bowl of cereal means kids are only scooping up micrograms of dyes, making quality research impossible.

“There’s no reason for those colors to be there,” he said. “They are cosmetics, they are lipsticks. “They’re there to make things that don’t taste very good seem like they taste good.”

He said many studies have shown a potential link between food coloring consumption and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children.

So why don’t cereal manufacturers use natural colorants in all their products? Nestle said research shows people think cereal doesn’t taste as good without bright colors.

Nearly a decade ago, cereal giant General Mills spent two years listening to consumers who said they wanted natural colors in Trix even though the cereal looked paler, Nestle said.

“They looked like the colors of autumn leaves,” he said. “I thought they were beautiful; These were herbal dyes, but I am not a 4-year-old child.”

According to Food Business News, the company’s technology director said sales of the less polished Trix “exceeded expectations.” But people had become accustomed to unnatural colors, and General Mills was besieged with complaints. So in 2017, General Mills turned back to artificial ingredients.

Other companies have tried to go natural over the years. Candy manufacturer Mars announced in 2016 that it would stop using artificial dyes in its candies, including M&M’s and Skittles, within five years. But five years later, the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest criticized Mars for continuing to use the dyes. Mars stated on its website that “a cross-functional Mars team has since found” that “consumers’ expectations for color in food vary widely across markets and categories,” so the company will reevaluate its promise.

Some breakfast cereals and other processed foods have faced backlash in the United States due to artificial colorings. Last month, activists protested outside WK Kellogg Co.’s Michigan headquarters, demanding that the company remove artificial dyes from its U.S. breakfast cereals.

Nestle said the FDA is too cozy with cereal companies to properly regulate multibillion-dollar businesses. He said Trump has no interest in regulating the food industry but would welcome Kennedy’s initiative to regulate corporate food manufacturers.

“I have no idea if the guy is a complete nutcase or if he can pull this off,” he said.

Related Content

Trump allies seek to punish Jack Smith in first test of revenge vow

Beatles vs. Beyoncé? The Grammys are talking nonsense again.

Trump coalition marks transformation of Republican Party