Colorant

A colorant is a substance added to materials to impart color. Colorants are used in many sectors, including food, cosmetics, textiles, inks, and plastics. They encompass dyes, pigments, and lake pigments and can be organic or inorganic. Dyes are typically soluble and color the medium they are dispersed in, while pigments are insoluble and color the substrate by dispersion. Lakes are insoluble forms produced by precipitating a dye with a metallic salt for applications like foods and cosmetics.

Natural colorants originate from plants, animals, or minerals, such as anthocyanins, carotenoids, beta-carotene, betalains, chlorophyll, and cochineal. Synthetic colorants are manufactured chemicals often chosen for brightness and stability and include azo dyes (e.g., tartrazine, sunset yellow) and inorganic pigments (titanium dioxide, iron oxides). Some colorants are restricted or prohibited in certain uses due to safety concerns; for example, regulatory agencies periodically review allergenicity, carcinogenic potential, and environmental impact. Lakes combine dyes with metal salts to form water-insoluble colorants used especially in foods and cosmetics.

Regulatory oversight varies by region. In the United States, the FDA maintains an approved list of color additives; in the European Union, colorants in foods are labeled with E numbers (e.g., E102 tartrazine) and cosmetics face safety evaluations under EU rules. Industrial colorants are governed by programs such as REACH in the EU. Safety, labeling, and permissible concentrations are core components of colorant regulation.