Food Standards Australia New Zealand Logo
Food Standards Australia New Zealand Logo

Table of food additive permissions in the US and Europe

(December 2012)

The table below provides information on the most often cited examples of additives banned in the United States or Europe.

All the food additives listed in the tables below have been allocated a Codex Alimentarius food additive name and number (INS stands for International Numbering System) as listed in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

In cases where manufacturers have never sought permission to use an additive this is noted as “no permission sought”.

Colours

INS Number

Name (Food Standards Code)

US name

US permission1

EU permission2

102

Tartrazine

FD+C Yellow No 5

, CFR §74.705

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

104

Quinoline yellow FCF

D+C Yellow No 10

X food

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

110

Sunset yellow

FD+C Yellow No 6

, CFR §74.706

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

122

Azorubine/Carmoisine

No permission sought

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

123

Amaranth

FD+C Red No 2

X, Banned CFR §81.10, §81.30

(see earlier discussion and explanation)

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

124

Ponceau 4R

No permission sought

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

127

Erythrosine

FD+C Red No 3

, CFR §74.303

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

129

Allura red AC

FD+C Red No 40

, CFR §74.340

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

132

Indigotine

FD+C Blue No 2

, CFR §74.102

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

133

Brilliant blue FCF

FD+C Blue No 1

, CFR §74.101

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

142

Green S

No permission sought

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

151

Brilliant black BN

No permission sought

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

153

Vegetable carbon

Carbon black

X, Banned CFR §81.10

(see earlier discussion and explanation)

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

155

Brown HT

No permission sought

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

Other food additives

INS Number

Name (Food Standards Code)

US name

US permission1

EU permission2

320

Butylated hydroxyanisole

Butylated hydroxyanisole

, CFR §172.110

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

342

Ammonium phosphates

Ammonium phosphate, monobasic

Ammonium phosphate, dibasic

GRAS (generally recognised as safe),

§184.1141a

§184.1141b

No permission sought

349

Ammonium malate

No permission sought

952

Cyclamate or calcium cyclamate or sodium cyclamate

Cyclamate and its derivatives

X, Banned §189.135

(see earlier discussion and explanation)

, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008

1. Colours and food additive permissions have been checked against the requirements of the US Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 21 – Food and Drugs which is written, amended and enforced by the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA). The individual standards from the CFR relevant to the food additive is provided; § stands for section of the CFR.

2. The European permissions have been checked against the European food additive legislation – i.e. Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food additives. The legislation lists the permitted food additives as well as their conditions of use.

Print

Return to top