What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to quantify food dye levels in Peeps marshmallow chicks using internal standards.

March 28, 2026

Internal Standard Analysis of Marshmallow Peeps

Key Points

This research aims to quantify food dye levels in Peeps marshmallow chicks using internal standards.
Applied internal standard method to analyze food dyes
Sampled blue, pink, and yellow Peeps
Quantified dye amounts without using volumetric glassware
Blue 1 dye in blue Peeps amounts to 225 μg
Red 3 dye in pink Peeps amounts to 370 μg
Yellow 5 dye in yellow Peeps amounts to 940 μg
Relative standard deviation around 5% for all measurements

Abstract

Experiments involving the determination of FD&C food dyes present in various foods are simple and easy to prepare for introductory level chemistry laboratories. The use of commercial samples demonstrate real world applications of analytical chemistry and the brightly colored solutions keep experiments engaging for students in some of their earliest laboratory experiences. The experiment presented here investigates the amount of food dye present in Peeps brand marshmallow chicks. Peeps are bulky and inhomogeneous, making sample preparation difficult, especially for introductory level chemistry students. However, these problems make Peeps an ideal candidate for the internal standard method. The nature of the data analysis allows for the mass of dye present in each peep to be determined without the need for volumetric glassware. The amount of Blue 1 dye present in blue, Red 3 in pink, and Yellow 5 in yellow Peeps is found to be 225, 370, and 940 μg, respectively. The relative standard deviation in each case is on the order of 5%.

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