Campbell Soup has joined the growing number of big food companies that want to be more honest about their ingredients.
The New Jersey-based food company said this week that it will remove all artificial colors and flavors from its suite of North American products, which includes the eponymous soup brand as well as Pepperidge Farms, Swanson and V8, according to Bloomberg. The changes will take effect around the middle of 2018.
"We're talking, thinking and acting differently about the food we make," Chief Executive Officer Denise Morrison told investors. "We will be more honest about what goes in our food, how we made our food."
The company will also look to cut high-fructose corn syrup from some items and grow its number of organic products, The Wall Street Journal reported. A Harris poll from last year found that 56% of Americans believe organic food is healthier than similar non-organic products. Sales of organic food reached $36 million last year, an 11% increase from 2013, according to Quartz.
Campbell's move is part of a broader reaction from the food industry to appeal to more health-conscious consumers. Earlier this year, Morrison talked of "an explosion of interest in fresh foods." It marks, she said, a "dramatically increased focus by consumers on the effects of food on their health and well-being and mounting demands for transparency from food companies about where and how their products are made, what ingredients are in them and how these ingredients are produced."
Among Campbell's peers in the food industry, Nestle USA has said it will start making chocolate candy without artificial flavors or colors by the end of this year, according to Bloomberg. Last month, General Mills said plans to remove these ingredients from its cereals —including Trix, Lucky Charms and Cocoa Puffs—by 2017.
Restaurants chains have also jumped on this trend, with Panera Bread, Chipotle, and Taco Bell all looking for more natural ingredients.
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