The rules are changing. Your label has to change with them.
Clean label Mexican seasoning. No artificial colors, no MSG.
Retailers are pulling synthetic dyes from private label programs and a voluntary federal phase-out is in motion. If your formulation still leans on Red 40 or MSG, you're on a retailer countdown. Everything we ship is already clean.
FSSC 22000 · FDA Registered · USMCA 0% Tariff
Certification documents available upon request.
The short answer
Clean label seasoning means formulation without artificial colors, MSG, TBHQ, or sodium benzoate. FISA Lab ships every formulation to this standard by default rather than as a premium tier. This meets FDA Red 3 revocation requirements effective January 15, 2027, and California AB 418.
You don't have as much time as you think.
FDA Banned Red Dye No. 3
January 2025: FDA revoked FD&C Red No. 3 under the Delaney Clause. Food manufacturers must reformulate by January 15, 2027. On April 22, 2025, HHS and FDA announced a voluntary industry phase-out of six additional dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3). This is a voluntary commitment, not a federal rule. Red 40 removal is currently driven by retailer contracts.
Read full articleRetailers Are Setting the Standard
Whole Foods, Kroger, Costco, and major grocery chains now require clean-label compliance for shelf placement. No clean label, no meeting.
Read full articleConsumers Read Labels
73% of consumers actively check ingredient lists before purchasing. "No artificial ingredients" is no longer a premium claim. It's expected.
Your Competitors Are Already Moving
Walmart is removing synthetic dyes from all private label brands by January 2027. Kraft Heinz and General Mills are eliminating all FD&C colors by end of 2027. PepsiCo is already reformulating. The question isn't whether to go clean label. It's whether you'll lead or follow.
Going clean label is easy. Keeping the flavor is the hard part.
Pulling artificial ingredients takes a spreadsheet. Holding the taste and shelf life your customers expect takes formulation work.
Flavor intensity drops without synthetic enhancers
MSG and artificial flavor enhancers boost perceived intensity at low cost. Most clean-label substitutes deliver weaker flavor at higher cost. The gap shows up in customer feedback.
Color stability breaks down
Synthetic dyes are stable across pH, heat, and shelf life. Natural alternatives can fade, brown, or shift in tone if not formulated correctly.
Cost per lb increases
Clean-label ingredients typically cost 2-3x more than synthetic equivalents. Without the right formulation, you're paying more for worse results.
Clean Label Across Every Operation
Co-Packers & Food Manufacturers
Clean-label flavor systems engineered for industrial production lines and multi-brand SKUs.
Learn moreGrocery & Retail Chains
Clean-label prepared foods for carnicería and deli programs. Ingredients your customers recognize.
Learn moreQSR & Fast Casual
Clean-label menu claims without reformulation headaches. Same taste, cleaner label.
Learn moreSnack Manufacturers
Natural colors and flavors. No Red Dye No. 3. No synthetic anything.
Learn moreHow we get you there.
Send Us Your Current Formulation
Or tell us what you're trying to achieve. Our food scientists review your specs and identify clean-label opportunities.
We Engineer the Replacement
Our R&D team develops a clean-label alternative that matches your current performance benchmarks. No artificial colors, no MSG, no compromise.
Test, Validate, Scale
We ship samples within 15 days. You test in your facility. When approved, we scale production with 15-day lead times for reorders, up to 30 days for new custom formulations. Standard for the industry.
0
Artificial Ingredients
15 days
Sample Turnaround
What Makes a Flavor System Clean Label?
Clean label means different things to different buyers. At FISA Lab, clean label is our manufacturing default. Not an upcharge or special request.
Our clean label standard:
- No artificial colors: We use natural colorants like paprika extract, beet powder, and annatto when color is needed
- No MSG: Flavor depth comes from real ingredients, not shortcuts
- No artificial preservatives: Shelf stability through formulation, not additives
- Simple ingredient lists: Ingredients your customers recognize
This isn't a premium line. It's how we make everything. Whether you're reformulating an existing product or developing something new, clean label is built in.
Clean Label by Retailer
Each retailer defines clean label differently:
- Whole Foods: Strictest standards. Check their banned ingredient list
- Kroger Simple Truth: Focus on no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives
- H-E-B: Growing clean label requirements for private label
- Costco/Kirkland: Increasingly requesting cleaner formulations
FISA Lab formulations are designed to meet the strictest retailer requirements so you don't have to reformulate for each customer.
Related reading on clean label
Four pieces that follow a clean label mandate from the regulatory trigger through the retailer requirement to the cost of the reformulation itself.
- What the FDA Red Dye ban means for food manufacturers
The regulatory timeline driving most clean label projects, and the eight colors likely to follow.
- Your retailer asked you to remove Red 40
What happens to color, flavor and shelf appearance once the synthetic dye comes out.
- Clean label requirements by retailer
Banner by banner, which ingredients each chain enforces and how far the lists diverge.
- What clean label reformulation actually costs
Development, trial runs and packaging changes, with the sequence that keeps the budget contained.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your formulation is next. Let's get ahead of it.
Request a clean-label consultation and we'll review your current formulation for reformulation opportunities.