All Natural Food Coloring

All natural food coloring has been difficult to get until recently. While it still may be hard to find in your local grocery store, there are a number of sources online.

There has been increased interest in organic foods in the past few years. Along with that, has been more concern about the link between artificial colorings and various illnesses and disorders in children. Health problems associated with artificial dyes are:

• Behavioral problems
• Hyperactivity
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Migraines
• Mood swings
• Food allergies

In fact, pediatricians and others are calling for bans on the following dyes:

• Blue 1
• Blue 2
• Yellow 5
• Yellow 6
• Red 3
• Red 40
• Green 3
• Orange B (used mostly in hot dogs)

All natural food colorings are made from natural products that are safe to ingest. In the past, this was done by adding herbs, vegetables, and fruit to foods to change their color. For example, grated carrot was added to cream when it was being churned to give the butter a golden flavor. Making your own dyes can be a hit or miss operation. It is hard to know when you have an intense enough dye to give good color.

Commercial, natural dyes are not always organic. If you want the food coloring to be all natural as well as organic, be sure that both of these things are stated on the label or box. Read the ingredient list carefully, especially if someone in your family has allergies. Chamomile can set off an allergic reaction in people that have pollen allergies or are allergic to grass. If you are unsure call or email the company to get the answers you need.

Some of the colors available and what they are made from are:

• Blue – often made from blueberry skins or red cabbage
• Green - usually made from vegetable extracts, like spinach
• Orange - made from a pulp which surrounds the annatto seed
• Purple - made from a purple colored carrot
• Brown - made from caramelized or burnt sugar, but may add flavor to some products
• Red - often made of hibiscus
• Yellow – made form turmeric
• Blue – sometimes made from red cabbage
• Pink – often made from beet

All natural food coloring is often vegan and kosher as well as being organic. Don't assume anything, however. Always check labels and ask questions. It is important to remember that almost anything can be labeled as “all natural”.

The following are some great sources for natural and organic food colorings:

• Chefmaster Natural Food Coloring
• Seelect Organic Natural Food Coloring
• Natures Flavors Organic Food Coloring

Although there are many benefits to using all natural food dyes, there are a few disadvantages as well. They can be tricky to work with and the results are not always as consistent as some people would like. It can be frustrating when you are used to using artificial dyes to try to tint icing a certain color only to have it end up a different hue than you imagined.

Here are some tips for using them:

• When using the all natural dyes, go slowly. Add the color a little at a time so that you can stop when you see you are as close as you can get to the proper color.
• Keep in mind that most natural food colors have a taste. They can changes the flavor of the food subtly or dramatically.
• While it is possible to make your own food colors, there is little consistency. Red Velvet cake will not be bright red when you use beets, it will be a dark brownish maroon.
• All natural dyes mix differently than the artificial ones. You could mix yellow and blue and end up with a muddy brown.
• If you are decorating a cake for an important event, try the colors out before you make the actual cake so you know how they will respond.

Using organic colors is an excellent, healthy alternative to conventional colors as long as you realize that it will take some time to learn how to get the color effects that you are looking for.

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