Wait, Are Potato Chips Getting Healthier?

So many companies are joining the MAHA movement.  Last week I wrote about the major changes Walmart is making to 1,000 Great Value foods.  Pepsi is joining the movement as PepsiCo is revamping its iconic Lay’s potato chips, one of America’s top selling brands of potato chips.  Everything from ingredients to packaging is changing. 

🥔 Ingredient Overhaul:  Lay’s is stripping away artificial flavors and colors across its core chip lineup. That means no more synthetic dyes or mystery additives. Instead, you’ll find:

• No artificial flavors or colors: Lay’s is removing all synthetic additives from its U.S. chip portfolio, including Lay’s Classic, Baked, and Kettle Cooked varieties.  No more artificial colorings on barbecue chips .

• Natural replacements: Chips will be flavored and colored using ingredients like spices, fruit and vegetable extracts, yeast, herbs, and plant-based colorings such as paprika and vegetable juice.
• No more seed or corn oils:  Lay’s will now be using avocado or olive oil.    

🧪 Recipe Updates

• Lay’s Baked chips: Will be made using olive oil instead of corn oil and will have 50% less fat than regular Lay’s Potato Chips.   
• Lay’s Kettle Cooked Reduced Fat Original Sea Salt chips: Will switch to avocado oil instead of a mixture of vegetable oils and now offering 40% less fat than standard chips.
• Barbecue varieties: One of the more popular flavors will be reformulated using vegetable juices and carob powder to replace artificial  dyes, with flavor integrity preserved.  PepsiCo indicated customers will not notice any difference in taste or in appearance.
• SunChips:  No changes as SunChips are already made without artificial additives, thus SunChips already meets the clean-label criteria.  (We love SunChips and often have them in our pantry as they are both tasty and whole grain.) 

🎨 Packaging Redesign

• New matte packaging with a custom typeface, wood-paneled backdrop, and refined color palette inspired by chip flavors (e.g., savory red, hickory brown, pickle green).
• Updated logo: Features “Lay’s Rays” — sunbeams symbolizing the light that helps potatoes grow.
• Farm-to-bag storytelling: Bags will highlight real potatoes and fresh ingredients, set against rustic wood-paneled backdrops that look like potato farm crates.  The bags will read “Made with Real Potatoes”.  Why?  Maybe because 42% of consumers didn’t know potato chips were “made out of real potatoes”. 

🌍 Global Rollout

• The redesign and recipe changes will extend to Lay’s sister brands worldwide, including Walkers (UK), Sabritas (Mexico), and Margarita (Colombia).
• Full visibility in stores and displays is expected throughout 2026. 

🧠 Final Thoughts: Chips with Healthier Oils and No Artificial Additives

Lay’s makeover isn’t just about aesthetics or marketing — it’s part of a larger shift toward cleaner, more conscious snacking. As the MAHA movement gains traction, brands like PepsiCo are proving that even comfort foods can evolve without losing their taste.  With real ingredients, healthier oils, and packaging that tells a story, Lay’s is inviting us to rethink what “snack food” looks like in 2025 and 2026. (For ideas on some healthy chip options, see:  Add Some Whole Grain Snacks to Your Day .)   

So yes — potato chips are getting healthier. And if Lay’s can do it, what’s next? Doritos? Cheetos? Stay tuned — the snack aisle is changing fast, and I’ll be here to break it down one crunchy bite at a time.

Sources:  Great Value foods , Lay’s potato chips , barbecue chips , ingredients, avocado or olive oil, olive oil , 40% less fat , vegetable juices and carob powder, packaging , bags, consumers , 2026 , Add Some Whole Grain Snacks to Your Day Image Sources:  Lay’s new packaging, Sunchips ingredients