June 17 (Reuters) - Kraft Heinz ( KHC ) said on Tuesday

it would not launch products with artificial colors in the

United States effective immediately, and would aim to eliminate

synthetic dyes from existing items by the end of 2027.

The Ketchup maker said that nearly 90% of its U.S. product

net sales are already free of food, drug & cosmetic colors -

also known as artificial colors or synthetic dyes.

This move comes a few months after Health Secretary Robert

F. Kennedy Jr. outlined plans to remove synthetic food dyes from

the U.S. food supply as part of a broader move to address

chronic diseases and conditions such as obesity among Americans.

Many packaged food companies, including W.K. Kellogg ( KLG )

and Tyson Foods ( TSN ), have been working on reformulating

existing products and introducing new items without artificial

dyes.

In early June, Walmart ( WMT )-owned Sam's Club said it

would eliminate over 40 ingredients, including artificial colors

and aspartame, from its private label brand Member's Mark, by

the end of this year.

Kraft Heinz ( KHC ) said that for the small portion of products that

currently contain artificial colors it plans to remove the dyes

where they are not critical, or replace them with natural

colors.

The Jell-O maker added that it would also look to reinvent

products with new colors where a matching natural replacement is

not available. It said the company was also working with its

brand licensees to encourage them to remove artificial colors as

well.