Is Anthocyanins (E163) Vegan?

Also known as: Grape skin extract, Enocyanin, Blackcurrant extract, Black carrot extract, Red cabbage extract

Vegan

Anthocyanins are vegan. The pigments come from fruit and vegetable skins, most often grape pomace, black carrot, elderberry, or red cabbage. Manufacturers use them as the plant alternative to insect-derived carmine.

Last checked How we decide

Ingredient Data

Vegan Status

Vegan

E-Number

E163

Also Known As

Grape skin extract; Enocyanin; Blackcurrant extract; Black carrot extract; Red cabbage extract

Source

Extracted from fruit and vegetables. Grape skins left over from winemaking, blackcurrants, elderberries, black carrots, red cabbage, hibiscus, and purple sweet potato are all commercial sources. Acidified water or ethanol pulls the pigment out, and the extract is concentrated and standardized for color strength.

Commonly Found In

Soft drinks, fruit preparations, yogurts and desserts, sweets and jellies, ice cream, jam, wine gums, and bakery fillings. The main plant-derived red and purple used to replace carmine.

Vegan Alternative

No substitute needed. E163 is vegan.

Additional Notes

Anthocyanins change color with acidity: red in acidic products, purple around neutral, and blue-green as pH rises. Formulators work around that by keeping the product acidic. Extraction sometimes uses sulfur dioxide, so sulfite-sensitive readers may want to check, and EU specifications limit residues.

In depth

The Pigment Behind Purple Plants

Anthocyanins are the compounds that make blueberries blue, red cabbage red, and autumn leaves turn scarlet. Chemically they are flavonoids, water-soluble and abundant in plant skins. Commercial extraction favors materials that are already byproducts. Grape skins and seeds left after pressing for wine are the largest single source, sold as enocyanin. Black carrot is the workhorse for stable reds, since its anthocyanins are acylated and hold color better than most.

Elderberry, blackcurrant, hibiscus, red cabbage, and purple sweet potato fill in the rest of the shade range. The extraction runs on acidified water or food-grade ethanol, sometimes with sulfur dioxide to protect the pigment during processing. Concentration under vacuum follows. Every input is plant or mineral, and the additive has no animal-derived route in commercial production.

Why the Color Shifts

Anthocyanin molecules change structure with pH, and each structure absorbs light differently. Below about pH 3 they sit in the red flavylium form. Toward neutral they lose color or turn purple. Above neutral they drift blue and then green before degrading. Red cabbage juice is the classic demonstration, turning pink with lemon and green with baking soda. That behavior constrains where the color can be used.

Anthocyanins dominate in acidic products such as soft drinks, fruit preparations, and confectionery, and appear rarely in neutral foods. Heat and light also degrade them. Compared with carmine or a synthetic azo dye, anthocyanins need more careful formulation and a shorter shelf life. That gap is the main reason some manufacturers have kept using carmine despite the demand for plant colors.

Anthocyanins Versus Carmine and Beetroot

Three reds compete for the same slot on an ingredient list. Carmine (E120) comes from cochineal insects, holds color superbly, and is not vegan. Beetroot red (E162) is plant-derived and bright, but fades quickly with heat, which restricts it to chilled and frozen products. Anthocyanins (E163) are plant-derived and handle heat better than beetroot, at the cost of shifting shade with pH.

For a shopper the practical rule is simple. E162 and E163 are plant, E120 is insect. One bonus of the anthocyanin route is that the pigment sources double as marketing: labels can say "colored with black carrot concentrate" or "fruit and vegetable concentrates" and avoid an E-number entirely. Coloring foods declared that way are also vegan.

Frequently asked questions

Is E163 vegan?

Yes. Anthocyanins are extracted from fruit and vegetable material such as grape skins, black carrots, elderberries, and red cabbage. No animal-derived input is used.

Are anthocyanins a good replacement for carmine?

For acidic products, yes. They give red to purple shades from plant sources and cost less than carmine. Their weakness is that the shade shifts with pH and fades with heat and light, so they suit soft drinks and fruit preparations better than long-life ambient products.

Why does red cabbage turn blue when I cook it?

Anthocyanins change structure with acidity, appearing red in acid and blue or green as pH rises. Hard water or a pinch of bicarbonate pushes the pan alkaline, and adding vinegar or lemon juice brings the red back.

Do anthocyanins contain sulfites?

Some extracts do. Sulfur dioxide is sometimes used during extraction to protect the pigment, and EU specifications limit residues in the finished color. Anyone sensitive to sulfites should check the finished product, since sulfite declaration rules apply above 10 mg per kilogram.

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