COLORANT APPLICATIONS

VII. COLORANT APPLICATIONS

As Dziezak (1987) notes, colorants are added to consumable products for the sole purpose of enhancing the visual appeal. Possible reasons underlying the need for enhancement include (NAS/NRC, 1971; IFT, 1986)

1. Correcting for natural variations in food or ingredient colors

2. Correcting for color changes during storage, processing, packaging,or distribu- tion

3. Emphasizing associated flavors or preserving unique identifying characteristics

4. Protecting flavor and vitamins from photodegradation Colorants represented a $245 million business in 1991, with certified colorants represent-

ing some 37% of the market total (TPC Business Research Group Report, 1992). At that time the growth projection for certified colorants was half that for natural colorants; the ing some 37% of the market total (TPC Business Research Group Report, 1992). At that time the growth projection for certified colorants was half that for natural colorants; the

Of the certified colorants, FD&C Red No. 40 remains the predominant dye used in the United States; Henkel (1993) estimated 1992 production at ⬃1,361,000 kg, or 454,000 kg more than the next leading colorant, FD&C Yellow No. 5. In 1982 Red No. 40, Yellow No. 5, and Yellow No. 6 comprised ⬃90% of the total certified color production (Mar- mion, 1984), a figure similar to that reported by the CCIC (1968) for Red No. 2, Yellow No. 5, and Yellow No. 6 production. Typical applications for the certified colorants are presented in Table 11.

The beverage industry is the largest user of certified colorants (NAS/NRC, 1971), with most fruit-flavored beverages utilizing certified colorants (Noonan, 1972) in the range of 5–150 mg/kg (Dziezak, 1987). Candies, confections, and dessert powders (e.g., gela- tins) are the next largest users of certified colorants (CCIC, 1968); whereas lakes are not suitable for beverages, they are often used to produce the striping effect in hard candies, as the lakes do not bleed or migrate (Dziezak, 1987). Lakes are also the colorants of choice for compound coated candies to prevent color specking (Noonan, 1972). The major categories of processed foods utilizing certified colorants are presented in Table 12 .

Meggos (1994) outlined the key decisions to be made in determining the optimal colorant for a specific application:

Table 11 Common Applications of the FD&C Certified Colorants Colorant

Applications FD&C Blue

Common Name

Hue

Bakery, beverages, condiments, No. 1

Brilliant Blue FCF

Bright greenish-blue

confections, dairy products, ex- tracts, icings, jellies, powders, syrups

FD&C Blue Indigotine

Baked goods, cereal, cherries, No. 2

Deep royal blue

confections, ice cream, snack foods

FD&C Green Fast Green FCF

Baked goods, beverages, cher- No. 3

Sea green

ries, confections, dairy prod- ucts, ice cream, puddings, sherbet

FD&C Red Erythrosine

Baked goods, confections, dairy No. 3

Bluish pink

products, fruit cocktail cher- ries, snack foods

FD&C Red Allura Red AC

Beverages, cereals, condiments, No. 40

Yellowish red

confections, dairy products, gelatins, puddings

FD&C Yellow Tartrazine

Bakery, beverages, cereals, con- No. 5

Lemon yellow

fections, custards, ice cream, preserves

FD&C Yellow Sunset Yellow FCF

Bakery, beverages, cereals, con- No. 6

Orange

fections, dessert powders, ice cream, snack foods

Table 12 Certified Colorant Use and Concentration by Processed Food Category

Colorant concentration

Total colorant

(mg/kg)

purchased

Category

Range Beverages (liquid and powdered)

(kg) a Average

75 5–200 Candies and confections

10–400 Dessert powders

5–600 Bakery goods

50 10–500 Sausage (surface)

200–500 Dairy products

30 10–200 Snack foods

25–500 a These figures represent sales data for the first nine months of 1967.

Source : CCIC (1968).

1. What is the target shade?

2. What are the physical/chemical attributes of the food?

3. Are there any nontechnical marketing requirements that must be met?

4. In what countries will the finished product be marketed?

5. What processing will the food undergo, both by the processor and the consumer?

6. What type of packaging will be used for the finished food?

7. What will the storage conditions be for the finished food? As Meggos (1994) notes, answering these questions will usually constrain the choices to

one or two colorants, the final selection then being determined in pilot plant studies. Addi- tional product specific information may be found in Noonan (1972) and Dziezak (1987).