Canthaxanthin
كانثازانثين
Colour (carotenoid, synthetically manufactured)
A carotenoid with a real backstory - the lowest safe limit of any colour. At food levels you're under it.
Why this verdict
Orange-red carotenoid. EFSA 2010 ADI 0.03 mg/kg - the LOWEST of any food colour - based on crystalline deposits in the retina (canthaxanthin retinopathy) seen in monkeys and humans; POD 0.30 mg/kg, UF 10. At food-colour levels EFSA found exposure unlikely to exceed the ADI (adults and children), but the very low ADI and the retinopathy basis warrant caution.
What It Is
An orange-red carotenoid, used in the EU mainly for one type of sausage and in animal feed (to colour salmon, egg yolks). Synthetically made.
This is the carotenoid worth a second look. In the 1980s it was the active ingredient in 'tanning pills' - and at those mega-doses it deposited (reversible) crystals in people's retinas, a condition called canthaxanthin retinopathy, with even a few aplastic-anaemia cases reported. That history is exactly why its safe limit, 0.03 mg/kg, is the strictest of any food colour - about 100x tighter than the synthetic dyes. The reassuring half: as an actual food colour in the EU it's barely used (one sausage), so EFSA found normal exposure stays under the limit. Dramatic backstory, low real-world food risk - but the low ADI is a legitimate flag.
Evidence & Status
IARC Carcinogen Group
Not classified
Acceptable Intake
ADI 0.03 mg/kg bw/day (EFSA 2010 / JECFA)
EU Status
Approved, limited (saucisse de Strasbourg + feed; ADI 0.03 mg/kg, EFSA 2010)
US · FDA Status
Approved (exempt from certification; max 30 mg/lb)
Halal Status: Halal
Food-additive canthaxanthin is manufactured synthetically (EFSA spec); halal and vegan.
Worth Knowing
Also Known As
E 161g · CI Food Orange 8 · beta-carotene-4 · 4'-dione
Primary Source
Evidence, not medical advice. You decide.
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