More Food Businesses Avoiding Colours Associated with Hyperactivity

Anyone particularly concerned about the presence of the colours in food should continue to check labels, especially in the case of products with a long shelf-life where the availability of reformulated products may vary.

4 Sep 2009 --- More food businesses have joined those that have already stopped using the six food colours associated with possible hyperactivity in children. Among those now producing product lines free of these colours are a major retailer, three manufacturers and a chain of restaurants.

From this month, Sainsbury's will be selling all of its own-brand products free from the colours (listed below) that are thought to cause hyperactivity in children.

Debenhams has joined two other restaurants on the list in ensuring that all food served up in its restaurants will now be free of the colours.

The three manufacturers added to the list are: Mr Lucky Bags Ltd, Paramount 21 Ltd and Tricky Treats. This means these products will now be free of the colours that were identified by a Southampton University study financed by the Food Standards Agency. The colours are:

* sunset yellow FCF (E110)
* quinoline yellow (E104)
* carmoisine (E122)
* allura red (E129)
* tartrazine (E102)
* ponceau 4R (E124)

The Agency hopes that more food businesses will be encouraged to voluntarily ban these colours from their products in the future.

Any food manufacturer, retailer or caterer wishing to notify the Agency that their brands or products are free of these colours, should email details to Clair Baynton, at clair.baynton@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk.

Anyone particularly concerned about the presence of the colours in food should continue to check labels, especially in the case of products with a long shelf-life where the availability of reformulated products may vary.