Kraft says it will remove food dye from some pasta and cheese

NORTHFIELD, Ill., Nov. 2 (UPI) -- Kraft plans to remove Yellow No. 5 and No. 6 food dye from pasta shaped like SpongeBob SquarePants, Halloween and winter shapes, the U.S. food maker says.

Kraft spokeswoman Lynne Galia told CNN via email that new versions of the product would have six additional grams of whole grains, be lower in sodium and saturated fat and will use spices instead of artificial food dyes to create its famous yellow-orange color. Spices such as paprika, annatto and turmeric in its new products. Tumeric. a spice used in curry is naturally yellow and provides mustard with its bright yellow color.

"Parents have told us that they would like fun Mac & Cheese varieties with the same great taste, but with improved nutrition," Galia told CNN in an email.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest said it was pleased with Kraft's decision, but said it was "puzzled" why Kraft would not change its original and popular elbow-shaped macaroni product as well.

"As Kraft has today shown, it is clearly possible to make macaroni and cheese without these harmful chemicals," Michael Jacobson, the executive director of the CSPI, said in a statement.

Synthetic dyes promote hyperactivity and other behavior problems in some children and may even pose a cancer risk, Jacobson said.