There is an ingredient we read at the end of the ingredient list on food labels: colorants.

Contrary to popular belief, colorants are found in almost every product we buy at the market, not just confectionery, biscuits, or chocolate. Since color is one of our evolutionary criteria for evaluating food, and since we often cannot assess the smell or taste of packaged products before purchasing, we tend to choose foods that look appealing on the shelf. However, since the beginning of industrial food production, there have been significant changes in these color ingredients. And the biggest trigger for this change has been children.

In 1973, American allergist Dr. Benjamin Feingold proposed that synthetic food additives caused hyperactivity in children. This hypothesis was initially met with controversy and was not considered sufficiently supported by scientific evidence. The real turning point came in 2007 in the United Kingdom: a comprehensive, double-blind study conducted at the University of Southampton found that six synthetic colorants were associated with hyperactivity and attention problems in children. These six colorants — Tartrazine (E102), Quinoline Yellow (E104), Sunset Yellow (E110), Carmoisine (E122), Ponceau 4R (E124), and Allura Red (E129) — have since been referred to as the "Southampton Six."

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) evaluated this study and took action, leading the EU to introduce mandatory warning labels on products containing these six colorants: "This product may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children." This label proved more effective than an outright ban: the majority of European manufacturers chose to reformulate their products with natural colorants rather than carry the warning. In the United States, however, the FDA reviewed the same research and reached a different conclusion, choosing not to introduce mandatory warning labels. As a result, the same brand's product continued to contain natural colors in Europe while using synthetic dyes in the US for many years. Change in the US has been slower; while consumer pressure and measures taken by some individual states have accelerated the process, no federal regulation equivalent to the EU's has yet been introduced.

Companies that did not want to carry this warning and sought to produce more natural products began using natural colorants. Natural colorants are generally compounds derived from edible plants such as fruits and vegetables, as well as plants found in nature. Each color has a pigment name, and these pigments are extracted from the plant and obtained purely as a coloring agent. We read names such as anthocyanin, beta-carotene, turmeric, and betanin on labels. As technology advances, the extraction of these pigments is increasingly carried out in ways that minimize environmental impact and require minimal chemical processing. However, as with synthetic colorants, it is not possible to achieve very bright or very wide-ranging colors.

While this is not an issue for conscious consumers, the higher cost of natural colorants compared to synthetic ones remains a disadvantage. With the growing use and production of natural colorants, this cost gap is gradually narrowing. Here's to a more natural and healthier diet for our children…

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