FDA approves algae and flower-based colors to expand natural options for F&B manufacturers

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of three natural colors to “expand the palette of available colors” for F&B manufacturers. Galdieria extract blue, butterfly pea flower extract, and calcium phosphate are the three dyes allowed, in line with the US Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) initiative to “Make America Healthy Again.”

The HHS and FDA announced plans to phase out petroleum-based synthetic dyes in the US food supply last month, as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continued to urge food companies to transition away from artificial food colors or face a ban.

“FDA staff have been moving quickly to expedite the publication of these decisions, underscoring our serious intent to transition away from petroleum-based dyes in the food supply and provide new colors from natural sources,” says FDA Commissioner Martin A. Makary.

Under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (Chapter VII, section 721), color additives are subject to FDA approval to determine whether they are safe before being used in food. This is based on projected human dietary exposure to the color additive, the additive’s toxicological data, and other relevant information, such as published literature.

Color me clean

The first approved color is Galdieria extract blue, a blue color derived from the unicellular red algae Galdieria sulphuraria. French company Fermentalg, which uses micro-algae for colorants and foods, submitted the petition for its approval.

Formulators can use the color in non-alcoholic beverages and beverage bases, fruit drinks, and dairy-based smoothies. It can also be incorporated into breakfast cereal coatings, hard candy, soft candy, chewing gum, flavored frostings, and ice cream.

Butterfly pea flower extract can impart bright blues and intense purple colors to dairy drinks and ready to drink teas.Meanwhile, butterfly pea flower extract can impart bright blue, intense purple, and natural greens to F&B. While already approved for sports drinks applications, the new approval of US-based Sensient Colors’ petition expands its use in ready-to-eat cereals, crackers, snack mixes, hard pretzels, multigrain chips, and more.

The third natural dye, calcium phosphate, is a white color approved for use in ready-to-eat chicken products, white candy melts, doughnut sugar, and sugar for coated candies. Innophos from New Jersey, US, filed the petition.

How easy is the shift?

Embracing natural dyes addresses the issue of health risks associated with artificial food colors. But an industry-wide shift toward natural colors is complicated, since the reformulation process is “neither simple nor immediate,” said the International Association of Color Manufacturers (IACM) in a statement last month.

Additionally, proposing reformulation by the end of 2026 “ignores scientific evidence and underestimates the complexity of food production,” flags the IACM. It also expects the resulting supply disruptions to limit access to familiar, affordable grocery items.

The organization calls for the FDA to provide “industry guidance” on technologies like precision fermentation to provide additional color sources to complement existing synthetic colors and exempt color additives.

Renee Leber, a food scientist at the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), shares some key factors color manufacturers should consider while reformulating their additives in the IFT’s official Brain Food blog. These include pH and environmental sensitivity, shelf life, vibrancy, availability, and costs.

“Because naturally derived color additives have shorter shelf lives than synthetic alternatives, higher concentrations may be required to approximate the desired product shelf life. It is likely that some products will see a decrease in shelf life overall as the shelf life becomes dependent on the visual acceptability of the product,” underscores Leber.

She also points out that naturally derived color additives “tend to be less vibrant than synthetics, so bright colors may be harder to replicate and fade more quickly.”

Additionally, some naturally derived color additives are heat, light, moisture, or oxygen sensitive, degrading quickly in their presence. “This might make some naturally derived color additives unsuitable for some applications or necessitate a packaging change.”