More UK Companies Join Voluntary Ban on Southampton Colours

The lists include both companies whose product ranges have never contained the six colours as well as product ranges that have been reformulated to remove the colours.

04/03/09 The UK Food Standards Agency Agency has updated its list of product ranges from food manufacturers, caterers and retailers that do not contain the six food colours associated with possible hyperactivity in young children.

The lists include both companies whose product ranges have never contained the six colours as well as product ranges that have been reformulated to remove the colours. The colours, identified by a Southampton University study financed by the Food Standards Agency, are:

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

Retailers that now have own-range product lines free from the colours include the Co-operative Group and Londis.

Food manufacturers producing product lines free of the colours include Cool Drinks company, Lakeland, Montgomeryshire Natural Spring Water products, Plas Farm Ltd, Rubicon Drinks, and Sunny Delight Beverage Company.

The Agency is publicising the product ranges to encourage the food industry to participate in the voluntary ban. The voluntary ban was agreed to by Ministers late last year.

Consumers who are particularly concerned about the presence of the colours will be advised to continue to check labels, especially in the case of products with a long shelf-life where the availability of reformulated products may vary.