Tartrazine (FD&C Yellow 5)

A synthetic bright lemon-yellow water-soluble azo dye. Chemically a trisodium salt of a pyrazole-azo-benzenesulfonate compound, listed in the United States as FD&C Yellow 5 and in the EU as E102. Delivers a clean strong yellow at very low use levels.

Bright lemon-yellow to orange-yellow free-flowing fine powder or granules. Highly water-soluble, with the corresponding aluminum lake available for oil-based and dry-blend applications where water solubility is undesirable.

We supply food-grade Tartrazine from manufacturers in China holding ISO, Halal, Kosher and other certifications relevant to the product and production. Both the soluble dye and the aluminum lake are produced.

Common market grades are sold by dye content: pure dye at minimum 85 percent total coloring matter and aluminum lake at 10 percent, 20 percent, 30 percent, or 40 percent dye content. Granulated and dust-free preparations are produced for handling-sensitive applications.

Bulk and reduced-MOQ shipments. Batch-level COA covering total dye content, subsidiary colors, uncombined intermediates, heavy metals, and microbiology.

Tartrazine was first synthesized in 1884 and entered commercial food and pharmaceutical use in the early twentieth century. It remains one of the most widely used food colorants globally because of its exceptional tinctorial strength, stability, and low cost relative to natural yellows.

Production proceeds by diazotization of 4-aminobenzenesulfonic acid, coupling with 4,4-dihydroxy-3-carboxypyrazole, and isolation as the trisodium salt. The crude dye is purified by recrystallization and standardized to the declared total coloring matter content. Aluminum lakes are produced by precipitation onto an alumina substrate.

Regulated as E102 in the EU and listed as FD&C Yellow 5 in the United States with mandatory ingredient declaration. Approved by JECFA with an Acceptable Daily Intake of 7.5 mg per kg body weight. In the EU, products containing Tartrazine must carry the warning that the color may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children, a requirement triggered by the Southampton study.

The technical profile is excellent: stable through baking, retort, UHT, and pasteurization; broad pH stability from 2 to 9; excellent light stability; and compatibility with most food ingredients. Cost per unit of color is materially below natural yellow alternatives.

Strategically, Tartrazine remains the workhorse synthetic yellow in markets that permit its use, with demand declining gradually in Europe and parts of North America under clean-label reformulation pressure and continuing strongly in much of Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

• Soft drinks, sports drinks, and powdered drink mixes
• Sugar confectionery, gummies, jellies, and hard candies
• Bakery products including sponge cakes, biscuits, and decorative icings
• Custards, instant puddings, and dessert mixes
• Pickles, mustards, and prepared condiments
• Ice cream, sorbet, and flavored milk products
• Snack seasonings and savory coatings
• Pharmaceutical tablets, capsules, and syrups
• Cosmetics and personal-care preparations