Gatorade recall: 15 lot codes, 122,021 cases, and a dye missing from the label

PepsiCo is recalling 122,021 cases of 28-ounce Gatorade in four flavors — Lemon Lime, Lemon Lime Zero, Orange and Orange Zero — because the drinks may contain Yellow No. 5 and/or Yellow No. 6 that are not listed on the label. The FDA classified the recall on October 2, 2026. Its official record lists 15 lot codes across 37 states. Here is the complete list, and how to read it on your bottle.

Which Gatorade bottles are recalled

According to the FDA enforcement record (recall number H-0009-2027), the recall covers 28 oz bottles of:

• Gatorade Lemon Lime
• Gatorade Lemon Lime Zero
• Gatorade Orange
• Gatorade Orange Zero

Other sizes and flavors are not part of this recall. The bottles went to 37 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.

All 15 Gatorade lot codes

The FDA record gives each lot with its Best by date. The record does not say which lot belongs to which flavor, so check every 28 oz bottle of the four flavors above:

Many early news reports listed only ten lots. The FDA record has fifteen: 082026 DL, 083126 DT, 082526 KM, 090426 KM and 072726 TL are also included. If you checked your bottles against a shorter list, check again.

How to read the code on the bottle

Each entry has two parts: a six-digit number followed by two letters, then a Best by date written as month, day and two-digit year — for example 091026 DL – JUN 07 27. The six digits look like a date (091026 reads as September 10, 2026), which makes them easy to confuse with the Best by date printed next to them. They are different numbers. Match both the six digits and the two letters: the record contains lots with the same Best by date but different codes, such as 072226 DT and 082126 OA, both dated April 18, 2027.

Why an unlisted dye is a recall

Yellow No. 5 (tartrazine) and Yellow No. 6 are approved color additives, so this is not about a banned ingredient. It is about the label. U.S. rules require any food containing Yellow No. 5 to name it in the ingredient list, and the FDA notes that it "may cause itching and hives in some people." A person who avoids it relies on the label — and here, the label did not say it was there.

That is why the FDA rated the recall Class II: a situation where use of the product may cause temporary or medically reversible health effects, and where serious harm is unlikely. The recall was initiated by PepsiCo on September 25, 2026, and is ongoing.

A recall in the middle of a reformulation

The four flavors in this recall are the same four products PepsiCo has publicly committed to change. In the FDA's tracker of food industry pledges to remove petroleum-based dyes, PepsiCo's commitment reads: "Remove FD&C colors from fruit punch, lemon lime, and orange Gatorade Thirst Quencher and Gatorade Zero products in Fall 2026." The tracker marked that pledge "in progress" as of September 15.

The FDA record does not explain how the dyes came to be missing from the label, and we will not guess. But the overlap is worth knowing: during a reformulation, bottles from before and after the change can share a shelf. That makes the lot code, not the flavor name, the only reliable way to tell whether a bottle is affected.

When recall databases will show it

The FDA classified this recall on October 2, but its weekly enforcement report carrying it is dated October 14, 2026. Public databases built on that report, including openFDA, and the apps that rely on them — Numeline included — will list the lots once it is published. Until then, the table above is the list to check by hand.