ALDI, Batavia, IL, announced it has removed certified synthetic colors, partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) and added MSG from its exclusive brand food products. The move is part of the company’s efforts to expand store offerings and address customers’ preferences and needs about particular ingredients in their food. With 90 percent of ALDI products being sold under private labels, the company says it is able to ensure that customers have a wide selection of options free of these ingredients and at the low prices for which it is known.

“At ALDI, we are dedicated to the well-being of our customers by providing high-quality groceries at the lowest possible prices and offering foods shoppers can feel good about serving their families,” says Jason Hart, CEO, ALDI. “Our decision to remove these ingredients from all of our exclusive brand foods delivers on our ongoing commitment to meet the evolving preferences of our customers. Since more than 90 percent of the products we sell are under our exclusive brands, eliminating these ingredients will have a real impact on the over 30 million people who shop in our stores.”

ALDI says it is continuing to take a leading role in responding to consumer demand by removing these ingredients from the vast majority of its products. The company began removing these ingredients in 2014, and customers will begin to see these products in stores this fall, with all reformulated product lines in stores by the end of 2015.