Is Carmoisine (E122) Vegan?

Also known as: Azorubine, Food Red 3, Acid Red 14, CI 14720, Brillantcarmoisin O

Vegan

Carmoisine is vegan by composition. The dye is a synthetic azo color made from petrochemical aromatics, with no animal ingredient anywhere in its manufacture. Its safety record rests on animal testing, and EU labels must warn about effects on children's attention.

Last checked How we decide

Ingredient Data

Vegan Status

Vegan

E-Number

E122

Also Known As

Azorubine; Food Red 3; Acid Red 14; CI 14720; Brillantcarmoisin O

Source

A synthetic azo dye built from petrochemical aromatics. Manufacturers diazotize naphthionic acid and couple it with a naphthol sulfonic acid, then isolate the disodium salt as a red powder. Nothing in the synthesis is animal-derived, and the dye has no natural source.

Commonly Found In

Jellies, blancmange, yogurts and desserts, cheesecake mixes, marzipan, sweets, jams, soft drinks, sauces, some medicines and cosmetics. Sold mainly in the EU, UK, and parts of Asia.

Vegan Alternative

No substitute needed for vegan reasons. Anyone avoiding azo dyes can look for anthocyanins (E163), beetroot red (E162), or paprika extract (E160c).

Additional Notes

Carmoisine is one of the Southampton Six, the group of colors that must carry the warning "may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children" on EU and UK labels. The others are E102, E104, E110, E124, and E129. The dye is not approved for food use in the United States.

In depth

A Petrochemical Red, Not an Insect One

Carmoisine belongs to the azo class. The name comes from the nitrogen-nitrogen double bond at the center of the molecule. Manufacture starts from naphthalene derivatives that come out of coal tar or petroleum refining. One aromatic amine is converted to a diazonium salt, then coupled to a naphthol, and the product is salted out and dried as a dark red powder. No part of the route involves an animal.

There is no insect extract, no gelatin carrier, and no animal fat in the standard formulation. Lake pigment versions are precipitated onto aluminum hydroxide, which is mineral. The reason people check is the name. Carmoisine sounds like carmine, and carmine is crushed cochineal insects. The two are unrelated: one is coal tar chemistry, the other is an insect. Confusing them costs vegans in both directions, since some avoid a synthetic dye they could eat and some accept an insect dye they would not.

The Southampton Warning

A 2007 study at the University of Southampton tested two mixes of food colors and sodium benzoate on children and reported increased hyperactive behavior. Six colors were involved: tartrazine (E102), quinoline yellow (E104), sunset yellow (E110), carmoisine (E122), ponceau 4R (E124), and allura red (E129). The EU response stopped short of a ban. Instead it demanded a warning on the pack.

Since 2010, any food containing one of the six must state that it "may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children." The UK retained the same rule after leaving the EU, and the UK Food Standards Agency asked manufacturers to phase the colors out voluntarily, which most did. That warning describes a behavioral concern and says nothing about animal content. A product carrying it can still be entirely plant-based.

Animal Testing and the Wider Objection

Every azo dye authorized for food has been through animal toxicology: feeding studies in rats and mice, reproductive studies, and genotoxicity work. Those studies are the basis for the acceptable daily intake EFSA set for carmoisine. Regulators require fresh data at each re-evaluation. A vegan who defines the diet by ingredient composition will read carmoisine as vegan, since the dye contains nothing animal.

A vegan whose objection extends to animal testing will avoid it, and would need to apply that same test to nearly every synthetic additive on the market. Both positions are coherent. The label cannot settle which one a reader holds. What the label does settle is composition, and on that question carmoisine contains no animal material.

Frequently asked questions

Is E122 vegan?

Yes, by composition. Carmoisine is a synthetic azo dye made from petrochemical aromatics with no animal-derived input. Vegans who also avoid ingredients with a history of animal safety testing may choose to skip it.

Is carmoisine the same as carmine?

No, and the similar names cause frequent mix-ups. Carmine (E120) is a red pigment extracted from crushed cochineal insects and is not vegan. Carmoisine (E122) is a laboratory-synthesized azo dye with no animal content.

Why do products with E122 carry a warning?

EU and UK law requires foods containing carmoisine to state that it may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children. The rule followed a 2007 Southampton University study that linked six colors to hyperactive behavior.

Is carmoisine banned?

Carmoisine is authorized in the EU and UK with limits by food category, and it is not approved for food in the United States. Several countries have restricted it over the years, and many manufacturers dropped it voluntarily after the warning label came in.

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