Since 2015, the global food industry started to replace artificial pigments with natural colors, the natural pigment market has been growing steadily. However, there are still many people have doubts or misunderstandings about natural pigments, such as the impression of "expensive, unstable, not gorgeous, and strange taste". What is the truth?

Misunderstanding 1. Natural pigment is not bright enough

In most food applications, the color of natural pigments can still be very bright. For example, Sunxin's vegetable juice source, suprared, performs as well as red 40 or carmine in baking and puffing cereal foods, thanks to a proprietary purification technology that removes ingredients that make red purple at neutral or high pH, as well as ingredients that turn brown when heated.

"In the past, food developers have had to increase their use of natural pigments or accept colors that are not bright enough," said David Rigg, global marketing director of senxin. Now there is no compromise. In the process of constantly understanding and studying natural pigments, innovative technologies can make them more stable and bright

Misunderstanding 2. The color of natural pigment is monotonous

Artificial colors mean that food producers must accept consistent, standardized colors, and the most interesting thing about using natural colors is that they can create more interesting colors.


Megan Longhi, technical service manager of senxin, pointed out that "we can now create a truly dynamic super fruit purple through natural pigments. In the past, technicians could only combine red 40 and blue 1, and then get an ugly blue gray or grape purple. But now it is possible to mix the blue pigment from plants with the natural pigment from anthocyanins or other vegetable sources, presenting fresh Indigo in different pH ranges. "


The steady increase in the number of natural pigments has brought together efforts such as Carthamus, a yellow pigment derived from safflower derivatives, which is applying for approval in the United States, while approval from the European Union and other regions has been completed. Carthamus is an excellent alternative to yellow 5, especially in beverage formulations.

In the past, artificial colors were like 16 color crayon boxes, but now, natural colors are as diverse as 64 color crayons.

Misunderstanding 3. Natural pigments usually have peculiar smell

Odor removal is an important aspect of natural pigment research in recent years. Generally speaking, many natural pigment products may have odor in the application process. However, new filtration and purification technology can remove these unnecessary odors.


When the concentration of natural pigment is lower than that of artificial pigment, the use amount will increase. If you want a real active color, it may affect the taste and texture of the product. However, at present, many natural pigment suppliers provide high concentration of natural pigment, which can achieve the same color without adding too much, and will not affect the existing flavor.

Misunderstanding 4. Natural colors is not stable

This view is common, but not accurate. For example, when studying the long-term stability of chocolate, researchers found that natural pigments are better than synthetic pigments. In the light stability challenge of juice drinks, the performance of red 40 × is much worse than that of natural red pigment scheme (plant-based anthocyanins). Of course, there are also some examples that show that the stability of natural pigments is very poor, such as turmeric in light instability.

However, in these aspects, the application of natural pigments has made some significant progress. Puffing technology was once regarded as the "killer" of pigment. The heat, pressure and steam in the production process will cause color change. Therefore, the application of natural pigments in cereals, sweets and pet foods has been a great challenge. But now, natural pigment suppliers have found a solution to keep the color bright during the expansion process. In these areas, natural pigments will have more opportunities.

Misunderstanding 5. Natural colors price is too much  higher

It is true that natural pigment is more expensive than synthetic pigment, but when consumers choose products, color and flavor will be equally important, so natural pigment is not necessarily expensive.


The price of natural pigment is also declining or keeping stable. For example, the concentration of black carrot pigment used five years ago is very low. After improving breeding and processing technology, the ability of extracting pigment is significantly improved, and the concentration of pigment products will be higher now.


95% of artificial pigments are pure colors, while the purity of natural pigments is relatively low. For example, the purity of black carrot pigment may only be 50%. Although natural pigments are relatively expensive, compared with spices and sweeteners, the cost of pigments is relatively low. Some people compare natural pigments with artificial pigments, which is also unscientific.

Current, Qingdao Healthchem Biotech Co.,Ltd can supply natural colors, such as Chlorophyll, Lycopene, Lutein, Beta-carotene, Curcumin， feel free to contact us for more detail information

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