00FOOD COLOURS, ON THE LABEL

Read the colour
on the label.

Rows of cupcakes with brightly coloured icing in pink, yellow, blue and green on a kitchen counter — AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

Bright food usually gets some help.

Colours are one of the food additives you are most likely to meet on a UK label. Each one is listed by name or E number, and six artificial colours must carry an extra warning.

E100–E180the colour rangeUpdated 16 October 2026

Check a colour

01Principles

Listed by name or E number
Six carry a warning
Safety-assessed before use
Know what makes it bright

02THE SHORT ANSWER

Every colour
is on the label.

Colours have to be declared.
A few need a warning as well.

ON THE LABEL

A name or an E number

The ingredient list says what each additive does, then its name or E number. On the UK's approved list, colours run from E100 to E180.

Check a colour

THE SIX

Six colours carry a warning

After FSA-funded research, food and drink containing any of six artificial colours must say they may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.

See the study

FROM NATURE TOO

Not every E number is made in a lab

The FSA points out that many additives are chemicals found in nature. The colour list includes curcumin (E100), paprika extract (E160c) and beetroot red (E162).

General information only, not medical advice. For advice about your own health, speak to a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified health professional.

03A QUICK COLOUR CHECK

What does that
E number mean?

Pick a colour you might see on a label. The bar shows how much extra attention the rules give it.

Based on the Food Standards Agency's guidance on food additives and its list of approved additives and E numbers, and EFSA's food colours page. Not medical advice.

Colour check

Choose a colourE162 Beetroot redE100 CurcuminE171 Titanium dioxideE102 TartrazineE129 Allura red

E162 Beetroot redApproved colour

On the UK's approved list as beetroot red or betanin. It is not one of the six colours that need a warning.

E100 CurcuminApproved colour

The first entry on the colour list. EFSA completed its re-evaluation in 2010 and refined the exposure estimate in 2014.

E171 Titanium dioxideNot in Northern Ireland

EFSA concluded in 2021 it can no longer be considered safe as a food additive. It has not been permitted in Northern Ireland since 7 February 2022.

E102 TartrazineWarning label

One of the six artificial colours. Food and drink containing it must carry the warning about activity and attention in children.

E129 Allura redWarning label

Also one of the six. The FSA encourages manufacturers to find alternatives, and some have already removed these colours.

Sources: Food Standards Agency, Food additives and Approved additives and E numbers; EFSA, Food colours.

04TWO NUMBERS WORTH KNOWING

One study,
one big review.

One figure from the label rule,
one from Europe's safety review.

6 colours

Artificial colours that need a warning

Sunset yellow (E110), quinoline yellow (E104), carmoisine (E122), allura red (E129), tartrazine (E102) and ponceau 4R (E124). A 2007 University of Southampton trial in 153 three-year-olds and 144 eight- and nine-year-olds found effects on hyperactivity.

WARNING LABEL · FSA

41 colours

Food colours re-assessed, 2009 to 2016

EFSA re-evaluated every food colour authorised before January 2009, finishing in 2016. Some, such as titanium dioxide, were looked at again later.

RE-EVALUATION · EFSA

The 2007 trial gave children drinks with artificial colours plus a sodium benzoate preservative, so its authors concluded that the colours, the preservative, or both increased hyperactivity in the general population.

05FOUR THINGS TO LOOK FOR

Thirty seconds
with the label.

Everything here is printed on the pack. You do not need to memorise E numbers to find it.

Find the ingredient list
Additives are listed there by what they do, such as colour, followed by a name or E number.
Look for the warning line
If any of the six colours is used, the pack must say it may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.
Check the E number range
Numbers from E100 to E180 are colours. Preservatives, sweeteners and other groups have their own ranges.
Keep the bigger picture
The FSA notes hyperactivity has other causes too, so watching what a child eats may help but may not stop it.

A glass jar full of brightly coloured boiled sweets in red, orange and yellow — AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

06WHY COLOURS ARE USED

Making up for
what light takes away.

Small glass bowls of turmeric powder, paprika and sliced beetroot on a wooden board — AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

EFSA lists three main reasons for adding colour: to make up for colour lost to light, air, moisture or temperature, to enhance colours already there, and to colour foods that would otherwise be colourless or a different colour.

Before an additive can be used it must be assessed for safety, meet a real technological need and not mislead consumers. Colours turn up in snacks, margarine, cheese, jams, desserts and drinks.

07Questions

Questions people ask

Which food colours need a warning in the UK?

Six artificial colours: sunset yellow FCF (E110), quinoline yellow (E104), carmoisine (E122), allura red (E129), tartrazine (E102) and ponceau 4R (E124). Products containing them must carry the warning about activity and attention in children.

What does the warning actually say?

It reads: "May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children". The Food Standards Agency also encourages manufacturers to find alternatives to these colours.

Are all E numbers artificial?

No. The FSA says many additives are chemicals that exist in nature, and that natural and man-made additives go through the same safety evaluations. The colour list includes curcumin, paprika extract and beetroot red.

What was the Southampton study?

A 2007 randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial at the University of Southampton. Children aged 3 and 8 to 9 drank mixes of artificial colours with a sodium benzoate preservative, or a placebo, and their behaviour was rated.

Is titanium dioxide still used?

EFSA concluded in 2021 that titanium dioxide (E171) can no longer be considered safe as a food additive. The FSA's list notes it has not been permitted in Northern Ireland since 7 February 2022.

08Sources

Read the colour
on the label.