Some Kraft Mac and Cheese to Get Less Artificial

Kraft mac and cheese is about to get a little less artificial—in cases where the "mac" part is made in a kid-friendly shape. The company will remove artificial dyes from its SpongeBob Squarepants, Halloween, and winter shapes varieties; the "original flavor" version will see no such change, the AP reports. The end result will still be yellow, just thanks to spices like paprika in place of dyes. The revamped offerings will be on shelves next year, and will feature more whole grains and less sodium and saturated fat.

For Vani Hari, who started a Change.org petition calling for Kraft to remove yellow dye 5 and yellow dye 6 from its pasta, it's a victory. "I was so shaken with the news that my body was trembling," says Hari, whose petition now has more than 348,000 signatures. She tells ABC News it's only a matter of time before Kraft follows with new recipes for the rest of its mac and cheese, noting the brand's UK variety uses no dyes and tastes pretty much the same. "I knew all along that it wasn't going to be an overnight change," she says. Kraft, however, says Hari's petition played no part in its decision. (More Kraft stories.)