Colour plays a crucial role in the way consumers taste and perceive the food they eat but what will the future look like for natural food colours given the uproar about artificial colourings in recent years? In the October 2009 issue of Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, an article discusses the rooted history of food colouring and looks into the future of the food industry’s move toward all-natural food colouring. History The article showed the history of food colouring... ...Read more »

Discount grocer Aldi has announced it will reformulate all its private label food items to remove the six food colours which were linked to hyperactivity in children by a UK study in 2007. The six colours, [sunset yellow (E110), quinoline yellow (E104), carmoisine (E122), allura red (E129), tartrazine (E102) and ponceau 4R (E124)], have been under fire ever since the late-2007 ‘Southampton Study’ which found that a mix of one of the six food additives with the preservative sodium benzoate... ...Read more »

Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) had today requested individuals and organisations with an interest in food regulation to comment on a proposed change to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.The Code contains food regulations that set out requirements for food businesses wishing to sell food in Australia and New Zealand – covering the content, labelling and handling of food products. Red 3 erythrosine in food colouring preparations Application A603 – initial assessment... ...Read more »

The Australian Food and Grocery Council, Australia’s peak food and grocery manufacturing industry association, has said that calls from the NSW Greens for the banning of a number of food additives are based on flawed research and not on sound science. A “Kids First Campaign” – a combined initiative of Additive Alert, FIN and Additive Education – was launched yesterday and they are leading the calls for FSANZ to ban the colours in Australia. AFGC Chief Executive Kate Carnell... ...Read more »

The issue of artificial food colours is about to be drawn out into the public forum in Australia, with a call for a phase out of six artificial colours. The Food Intolerance Network (FIN) is to send a letter today to FSANZ (Food Standards Australia New Zealand), which will call for a ban on six additives [sunset yellow (E110), quinoline yellow (E104), carmoisine (E122), allura red (E129), tartrazine (E102) and ponceau 4R (E124)]. The colours are used in a diverse range of food and have previously... ...Read more »