Kraft Heinz launches Jell-O Simply, cuts artificial dyes and sugar

Kraft Heinz is using JELL-O to test how far a legacy brand can be modernized without losing the comfort-food appeal that made it famous. The company’s new JELL-O Simply line drops FD&C colors and artificial sweeteners, cuts sugar by 25% in ready-to-eat cups, and makes clear that ingredient cleanup is now part of the playbook for brands trying to stay relevant in the center store.

The launch, announced May 19, is a permanent addition to the portfolio and comes as Kraft Heinz continues a broader reset under CEO Steven Cahillane. The brand says JELL-O has been around for more than 125 years, but the new line is designed to bring younger parents back into gelatin and pudding with simpler labels and more recognizable ingredients. The ready-to-eat cups use real fruit juice and currently include Orange, with Raspberry Lemonade and Blueberry joining the lineup. Gelatin and instant pudding mixes are set for nationwide distribution in August 2026 in Vanilla, Chocolate, Banana and Strawberry.

Pricing is aimed squarely at the mass market. Kraft Heinz said the mixes will sell for $2.24 per box, while the ready-to-eat four-packs will retail for $3.99. That keeps the launch in the same value conversation as the rest of the grocery aisle, even as the product tries to signal something cleaner and more modern.

The move also fits into a larger ingredient strategy that goes beyond dessert. In May 2025, Kraft Heinz said it would stop launching new U.S. products with FD&C colors immediately and remove the remaining certified colors from its U.S. portfolio by the end of 2027. At the time, the company said nearly 90% of its U.S. products were already free of FD&C colors by net sales, and that it had made more than 1,000 recipe changes over the previous five years. Kraft Heinz has also committed about $600 million in incremental spending across marketing, sales and R&D as part of its turnaround effort.

What makes the JELL-O reset notable for the protein category is that it sits alongside, not apart from, Kraft Heinz’s work on more protein-forward foods. The company’s March 2026 PowerMac launch brought 17 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber per serving, made with pea protein and dairy. That pairing suggests a bigger thesis: protein can upgrade the familiar, while cleaner labels can rescue indulgence. Food Dive cited Mintel data showing half of parents avoid artificial sweeteners and one in three rank sugar content as their top concern, which helps explain why a dessert brand is being reformulated now. The lesson reaches well beyond JELL-O. Better-for-you cues are becoming baseline expectations, whether protein is the headline or just part of the sell.