Pushing Red #40- A New Conspiracy?

Notice the slurpee!

Watching and re-watching the TV show "Fringe", I thought it was odd how often the characters ate red licorice. Walter eats it, Peter eats it. Ok, that makes sense, they are eccentric. But why is one of the silver-blooded soldiers from another world shown eating red licorice? No explanation. Then I saw George Clooney eating it while driving in "The Men Who Stare at Goats". No explanation is given, nothing in the plot that would explain why the director chose to film them eating this particular candy. " Wayne's World" and the recent alien flick "Super 8" also promote it. "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" features a shot of a red cup full of red licorice that almost fills the entire screen. Walter from "Fringe" also has a penchant for red slurpees. He's even shown drinking one on the cover of the season two DVD case. It is the only thing on the cover that is colorful. .It is easier to see in real life instead of the above photo. But why bother? What does it mean?
Turns out both red slurpees and red licorice are dyed with Red #40. Many people are allergic to it. It's also a known carcinogen. Why is it being promoted?  Have they increased the toxicity of it? Just another way of depopulation?
After watching "Transformers: Dark of the Moon", I planned to include the red licorice sighting on this post. As I was leaving the theater, what should happen to be directly on my path? A single stick of red licorice. Just letting me know that I really am living in the matrix I guess.