Minimums are built for big customers.
Large color and flavor houses are set up for large volumes. A brand ordering a few hundred pounds a year can wait in a queue or never hear back.
Independent reformulation matchmaker
Reformulate with natural colors and flavors. Find suppliers who take small orders.
OTHER is a free reformulation matchmaker for small and mid-size food and beverage brands. Run the audit, get a one-page sourcing brief, and meet independent natural color and flavor suppliers. We don't sell color or flavor. We introduce you to people who do.
Run the free auditFree. No sales call required.
Supplier or co-packer? Claim your free listingNext federal deadline
FD&C Red No. 3 out of food: January 15, 2027
FDA, FD&C Red No. 3 (stay lifted Aug 5, 2026, 91 FR 50475)OTHER in 45 seconds.
Small orders get slow answers.
Most brands moving to natural colors and flavors hit the same four walls.
Every rep sells one catalog.
Supplier help is often free, and it covers that supplier's products. Nobody lays the options side by side for you.
Natural colors behave differently.
Low pH, heat, light and long shelf life break some swaps, especially blues and greens. You often need more color, and it costs more.
The dates keep moving.
Many explainers still say the six-dye phase-out ends in 2026. FDA's own tracker now says end of 2027.
What switching costs, by the published ranges
Raw material cost vs synthetic
Color needed by volume vs synthetic
times the synthetic baseline
The clock, with sources.
What is actually due for synthetic dyes, and when. Every date links to its primary source.
Last checked: October 31, 2026OTHER Regulation hub, last checked October 31, 2026
Jan 1, 2027
California AB 418: Red No. 3 banned in food sold in California.
FinalJan 1, 2027
Texas SB 25: warning labels on new labels for foods with listed ingredients. Enforcement paused for plaintiff members.
On holdJan 15, 2027
FD&C Red No. 3 revoked in food nationwide.
FinalJuly 1, 2027
Virginia SB 1289 and HB 1910: seven dyes out of public school meals.
EnactedEnd of 2027
FDA target for the voluntary phase-out of Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2 and Green 3.
VoluntaryJan 1, 2028
West Virginia HB 2354: statewide ban on seven dyes, on hold in court.
On hold
The six dyes are not banned federally. Their phase-out is voluntary, and FDA's tracker lists 32 company pledges, 12 marked complete. FDA, Tracking Food Industry Pledges (current as of Oct 16, 2026)
13 states have enacted school-meal dye rules on our tracker. OTHER Regulation hub, last checked October 31, 2026
We don't sell color. We introduce you to people who do.
OTHER Natural Flavors is a service of Xponent21 Inc, an innovation agency in Richmond, Virginia. We own no supplier and take no side.
Supplier-agnostic
OTHER doesn't buy or sell ingredients. Every quote and purchase is between you and the supplier.
Your name stays private
Suppliers see your product details. Your company name stays private until you approve an introduction.
Minimums in writing
A minimum shows "Confirmed by supplier" only after the supplier confirms it to us in writing. Everything else is labeled with its public source.
Confirmed by supplier
Dated and sourced
Every date on the Regulation hub links to a primary source and shows when we last checked it.
InfoSwap options are options to test, not promises. Confirm regulatory status with counsel and test every formulation.
From Red 40 to a supplier call in five steps.
- Step 1
Run the audit
Pick your product type and the dyes on your label. Tell us the conditions it has to survive: pH, heat, light and shelf life.
- Step 2
See your swap options
For each dye, you get natural options to test and where each one struggles.
- Step 3
Get your one-page sourcing brief
Your answers become a brief a supplier can quote from.
- Step 4
Meet matched suppliers
We send your brief to independent suppliers whose specialties fit. Your name stays private until you approve a match.
- Step 5
Sample, test and buy direct
You request samples, run your bench and shelf-life tests, and buy straight from the supplier.
Sourcing brief · OTH-0142
Swap in progressCherry red, no Red 40
- Product
- Cherry slush concentrate
- Target color
- Bright cherry red
- pH
- 3.2
- Process
- Hot fill, 85°C
- Shelf life
- 12 months ambient
- Volume
- 4,000 lbs / year
- Timeline
- Ship by Q3 2027
Find who can make it.
Three kinds of partner, side by side.
Live
Natural color suppliers
Compare specialties, published minimums and sample policies. A minimum shows as confirmed only when the supplier confirms it to us in writing.
See suppliers that take small ordersLive
Flavor houses
Small and mid-size flavor houses that publish low minimums, each number shown with its source.
Browse the directoryLive
Co-packers
Contract manufacturers that publish small-run or pilot capabilities. Profiles come from public sources and stay unconfirmed until the co-packer confirms them in writing. Whether each handles natural colors is not verified yet.
Browse co-packersFor suppliers, flavor houses and co-packersClaim your free listingShare your minimums in the supplier survey
Small brands are reformulating. Be the one they find.
Claim a free listing with your specialties, minimums, sample policy and lead times. When a brand's brief fits what you make, we send it to you anonymized, and you decide whether to respond. Co-packers list the same way.
30 suppliers listed so far.
Source: OTHER directory, live countFree to list
No listing fee. No paid placement.
Reviewed by a person
We check every claim before it goes live.
You control the facts
We only publish a minimum as confirmed when you confirm it in writing.
Industry data, from the people who source.
We survey brands and suppliers on minimums, lead times and what slows reformulation, then publish the results.
Sourcing survey
Answer the survey and we send you the report free.
Take the surveyQuarterly industry reports
Anonymized, aggregated results on minimums, lead times and where swaps fail. Every figure carries its source and date.
Supplier verification
Suppliers can ask us to review their claims. We publish what we find.
Data API
Subscription access to the survey and tracker data for suppliers, manufacturers and analysts.
Opening soon and Planned items are not available yet. Ask for early access
Suppliers already listed
Basic Food Flavors
North Las Vegas, NV, US · Natural flavors
Ownership not confirmed
Savory flavors
- Minimum order:
- Not published
- Lead time:
- Not published
Certifications: Kosher, Halal
Last checked Oct 31, 2026Bickford Flavors
Wickliffe, OH, US · Colors and flavors
AnnattoBeetVanillaSweet flavors
- Minimum order:
- "No Minimum Order"; wholesale: "no minimum order requirement after one gallon" (self-reported)
- Lead time:
- "ships within 24-48 hours after an order is placed" (self-reported)
Certifications: Kosher
Last checked Oct 31, 2026Blue Pacific Flavors
City of Industry, CA, US · Natural flavors
Part of a larger company
Vanilla
- Minimum order:
- Not published
- Lead time:
- Not published
Certifications: Organic
Last checked Oct 31, 2026Start with the facts
Natural colors FDA has approved since 2025
Every decision since 2025, with permitted uses, limits and status.
Source: OTHER Regulation hub, last checked October 31, 2026State food dye laws
Enacted statewide, labeling and school-meal laws with effective dates.
Natural blue in acidic drinks
Galdieria, gardenia, spirulina and butterfly pea compared below pH 4.
Source: OTHER natural blue guide, last checked October 31, 2026What reformulating costs
Published figures on cost-in-use, volume and per-SKU ranges, each rated for confidence.
Questions brands and suppliers ask
OTHER Natural Flavors runs a free reformulation audit, writes a one-page sourcing brief, and introduces small and mid-size food and beverage brands to independent natural color and flavor suppliers. It is a service of Xponent21 Inc in Richmond, Virginia. We don't sell color or flavor.
No. FD&C Red No. 40 is still legal federally. FDA is working with industry on a voluntary phase-out of six certified dyes, including Red 40, with a target of the end of 2027. Some states restrict it in school meals. Red No. 3 is different: it is revoked in food as of January 15, 2027.
Yes. The audit and your one-page sourcing brief are free, and no sales call is required.
Often, but not always. Low pH, heat, light and long shelf life make some swaps hard, especially blues and greens. The audit flags those cases so you can ask suppliers for stability data before bench work.
Suppliers see your product details. Your company name and contact details stay private until you approve an introduction.
Nothing. Listing is free. We review every claim before it goes live, and we only mark a minimum "Confirmed by supplier" after you confirm it in writing.
Yes. Co-packer profiles are live and built from public sources. Each stays marked unconfirmed until the co-packer confirms it to us in writing. Co-packers can claim a free listing and add their own details.
Yes for sourcing. The directory and the sourcing brief cover natural colors and flavors. Our Regulation hub and guides currently cover synthetic dyes and natural colors.
OTHER is a service of Xponent21 Inc. It is free for brands and suppliers today. We plan to offer paid tools to suppliers, such as verification and data subscriptions. Anything paid will be labeled, and we publish what we find.
From the Regulation desk
Using OTHER
Xponent21 launches OTHER Natural Flavors: how AI brand visibility agencies are moving into data and information
Xponent21 launched OTHER Natural Flavors, a free information service that publishes sourced FDA dye dates, state laws, ingredient guides and a supplier directory for food manufacturers.
Last checked October 31, 2026Regulation
What the FDA Food Dye Phase-Out Means for Small Food Brands
Which dye deadlines are binding, what natural colors cost, and a five-step reformulation plan for small and mid-size food brands.
Last checked October 31, 2026Regulation
End of 2026 or End of 2027? Why the Food Dye Phase-Out Date Changed
HHS and FDA announced an end-of-2026 target in April 2025. FDA's tracker now says end of 2027. Neither is a legal deadline; Red No. 3 and state laws are.
Last checked October 31, 2026When is the deadline to phase out Red 40?
Read the answerIs Red 40 banned in the United States?
Read the answerWhat is the Red 3 ban deadline for food manufacturers?
Read the answerWhat happened to Orange B and Citrus Red No. 2?
Read the answerKeep the cherry. Lose the Red 40.
Run the free audit and get a one-page sourcing brief a supplier can quote from.
Run the free auditSupplier or co-packer? Claim your free listingPress or partnership inquiry? Get in touch