There is increasing contemporary appeal and interest in natural versus synthetic food and beverage colorants based on increasing health awareness and global demand for chemical-free food products. There are many commonalities in defining and regulating food colorants among countries and specifics are provided for the United States, the European Union, and Japan. Overall global guidance for food colorant safety and marketing is provided by international bodies such as the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) and contemporary safety assessment standards and regulations are in place in many countries to maximize protection of consumers.
