Solving the Chemical Conundrum: Why the Produce Industry Needs to Respond Positively to Walmart’s Additive Ban

In early October 2025, Walmart U.S. announced it was effectively banning synthetic dyes and more than 30 other food ingredients from its in-house private label products by 2027. For those of us who work in the fresh produce industry, it’s worth looking at this development not in terms of knock-on effects, but more as an indicator of where the wind is blowing when it comes to both consumer and retailer trends.

For the longest time, the prevailing attitude in the U.S. has been “if it’s allowed, I can use it — no questions asked.” But given the largest grocery retailer in the world, Walmart, has an outsize influence on the supply chain, it’s of real significance it is choosing to go a different route. It signifies: “It may be allowed, but I no longer want it.”

While not the beginning of a trend — after all, small and specialty retailers in the U.S. and overseas already have similar policies in place — it is a sign that this thinking is now going mainstream. 

And we are already seeing produce suppliers responding to this, recognizing it is a policy that’s here to stay, by seeking long-term solutions to ensure they both comply with Walmart’s declaration, and are well-positioned to maintain compliance as and when requirements are tightened further.

Saying that, I think it’s clear that many of the factors that drove this decision are both retailer- and consumer-based.

Firstly, we shouldn’t underestimate the impact of the Make America Healthy Again initiative. Regardless of whether we agree or not with the administration’s views on medicine, vaccines, and so on, the initiative signaled a focus on healthy living. While it may mean different things to different people, the concept of “healthy living” almost universally precludes the use of chemicals in fresh produce.

But it’s not just happening in North America. Over in Europe, the EU undoubtedly has its own complex dynamics, but they all converge on clean, chemical-free living. And particularly as it pertains to fungicides, we see global concern, not just about chemical residues, but also about organisms developing resistance to conventional fungicides. 

However, while countries like Germany are actively investigating strategies to transition to a pesticide-free agriculture, campaign group Foodwatch concluded in 2024 that Europe-wide “most supermarkets lack a coherent strategy to reduce pesticides.”

In many ways, the uncertain situation is leaving it up to growers to pick up the slack, and lead the way in moving away — or at least cutting down on — agrochemicals when it comes to our fruits and vegetables. At the same time, multiple recent studies have shown that pesticides and fungicides are becoming less effective as fungi and disease increasingly develop resistance to conventional agrochemicals.

With these factors in mind, it is clear that customers and fungi alike need a new approach, and now is the time for the produce industry to start looking at natural, and viable, alternatives to using chemicals. There is such a thing as waiting too long because growers may find themselves in a situation where they can no longer treat effectively for fungi.

Change is also needed to make sure growers remain in compliance now — and in the future — with tightening MRL regulations. One such viable solution are broad spectrum natural fungicides, which can effectively manage fungi, while at the same time meeting consumers’ desire for chemical-free produce.

Anthony Zografos, Ph.D., is founder and chief executive of Akorn Technology.