Tech firms look for natural food colours

French agency Fermentalg has been all around the planet in its seek for helpful microalgae.

“One among our fortunate scientists acquired to go and climb the volcanoes within the Caribbean for instance, and I’ve to restrain myself from gathering extra each time I’m going residence to New Zealand,” says Hywel Griffiths, chief scientific officer at Fermentalg.

There are tons of of 1000’s of species of microalgae – microscopic organisms, which largely dwell in water. They’re important to the aquatic meals chain and in addition produce half the oxygen we breath.

Some are already used commercially, to make food, animal feed and fertiliser.

However for Fermantalg one explicit sort, Galdieria sulphuraria, has a really helpful trait. It may be used to supply a pigment, appropriate to be used in meals, referred to as Galdieria blue.

“We develop the algae and make plenty of it below situations which make plenty of this explicit molecule – the blue,” says Mr Griffiths.

The pigment can be utilized for any meals and drinks and Mr Griffiths expects the primary merchandise utilizing Galdieiria blue will probably be on store cabinets early subsequent yr.

Galdieria blue was approved by the US Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) in Might, together with Butterfly pea flower extract (additionally a blue color) and calcium phosphate (white).

The FDA also approved Gardenia blue earlier this month.

New sources of color for meals are wanted as synthetic meals dyes are on their manner out.

In January, the FDA announced the banning of Purple Dye No. 3 in meals merchandise.

As well as, the FDA is seeking to section out petroleum-based artificial dyes equivalent to Yellow Dye 5 and 6 by the tip of subsequent yr as a part of the federal government’s mission to “Make America Wholesome Once more”.

“For the final 50 years, American youngsters have more and more been dwelling in a poisonous soup of artificial chemical compounds,” FDA commissioner Marty Makary stated at a press convention in April.

Although not an outright ban, the FDA is hoping the meals business voluntarily complies to remove synthetic meals dyes by 2026.

It comes after years of strain from mother and father and campaigners for the FDA to revoke approval for dyes or educate shoppers extra in regards to the dangers.

In current occasions, many US states have made their very own strikes to move legal guidelines to take away synthetic meals colouring dyes.

International locations differ on the restrictions they’ve in place. Traditionally, the UK and the European Union have been stricter than the US.

The EU has been phasing out synthetic colourings over the past 20 years and in addition introducing warnings on meals with different colors.

So, these are good occasions for corporations creating pure options.

US-based Sensient creates pure colors by sourcing uncooked supplies which can be grown particularly for his or her color content material. For instance, some pink and purple colors are derived from carrots and potatoes.

“These crops are harvested, washed, processed right into a juice, and the color is extracted with water or different solvents,” says Paul Manning, chief government officer at Sensient.

“The ensuing color is additional processed to stabilise the focus and refine it to the precise shade desired by the shopper.”

However the laborious work will probably be making an attempt to match the artificial color. “It have to be equally vivid,” says Mr Manning.

“There are many examples of manufacturers changing to pure colors with much less vivid and vibrant shades the place the product does poorly available in the market and clients complain about each the color and the flavour.”

Getting a steady, shiny color additionally concerned a lot work for Fermantalg.

“To our shock we discovered that the method of rising the algae and the method of extracting the color can even have a reasonably important affect on the steadiness of the product on the finish, despite the fact that it is pretty closely purified,” says Griffiths.

“However one thing that we have accomplished upstream is having an affect on how steady it’s on the finish.”

Will these new colors price extra?

“They’re dearer, however in precise contribution to the tip product, they don’t seem to be truly that large an affect as a result of these items are used at a fraction of a share within the closing product,” says Mr Griffiths.

“In the event you had a nosebleed and stood over the sink… that just a little little bit of color goes a good distance.”

For the manufacturers which have lengthy relied on synthetic colourings, it is an upheaval.

“We’re reformulating our cereals served in colleges to not embrace FD&C colors by the 2026-27 faculty yr,” says a spokesperson for WK Kellogg, the corporate behind Kellogg’s.

FD&C refers to sure licensed artificial color components regulated by the FDA, and authorised by the Federal Meals, Drug, and Beauty Act.

Last year protesters gathered outdoors the corporate headquarters in Michigan, calling on it to take away synthetic dyes from cereals equivalent to Froot Loops.

“We is not going to be launching any new merchandise with FD&C colors, starting in January 2026,” the spokesperson stated.

This yr meals giants together with Nestle, Kraft Heinz, Basic Mills and Conagra have all pledged to phase out artificial food colourings.

One of many challenges for meals manufacturers reliant on synthetic colouring is that many pure meals dyes do not essentially have a protracted shelf life, says Institute of Meals Technologists meals scientist Renee Leber.

“Whereas artificial dyes will outlive the shelf lifetime of just about any product.”

She additionally says that as many manufacturers rush to make the swap it may result in a “bottleneck” in manufacturing.

“We do not essentially have all these colors obtainable. However we’ve got 10 months to get that proper.”

Given this is not an outright ban, is it nonetheless anticipated to result in sweeping change within the US meals business?

“If you’re a cereal firm and you’ve got a brightly colored cereal and your whole opponents swap from synthetics to pure colors, then you do not essentially need to be the final one,” says Ms Leber.

“It is a tight timeframe however firms are doing their finest to conform.”