European Union (E.U.) Directive 95/45
Purity Criteria concerning Colors for use in Foodstuffs
26 July 1995
E150a PLAIN CARAMEL
Definition: Plain caramel is prepared by the controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates (commercially available food grade nutritive sweeteners which are the monomers glucose and fructose and/or polymers thereof, e.g., glucose syrups, sucrose, and/or invert syrups, and dextrose). To promote caramelization, acids, alkalis and salts may be employed, with the exception of ammonium compounds and sulphites.
Description: Dark brown to black liquids or solids
Purity
Color bound by DEAE cellulose Not more than 50%
Color bound by phosphoryl cellulose Not more than 50%
Color intensity (¹) 0,01-0,12
Total nitrogen Not more than 0,1%
Total sulphur Not more than 0,2%
Arsenic Not more than 1 mg/kg
Lead Not more than 2 mg/kg
Mercury Not more than 1 mg/kg
Cadmium Not more than 1 mg/kg
Heavy metals (as Pb) Not more than 25 mg/kg
(¹) Color intensity is defined as the absorbance of a 0,1% (w/v) solution of caramel
color solids in water in a 1 cm cell at 610 nm.
E150b CAUSTIC SULPHITE CARAMEL
Definition: Caustic sulphite caramel is prepared by the controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates (commercially available food grade nutritive sweeteners which are the monomers glucose and fructose and/or polymers therof, e.g., glucose syrups, sucrose, and/or invert syrups, and dextrose) with or without acids or alkalis, in the presence of sulphite compounds (sulphurous acid, potassium sulphite, potassium bisulphite, sodium sulphite and sodium bisulphite); no ammonium compounds are used.
Description: Dark brown to black liquids or solids
Purity
Color bound by DEAE cellulose More than 50 %
Color intensity(¹) 0,05-0,13
Total nitrogen Not more than 0,3 %(²)
Sulphur dioxide Not more than 0,2 %(²)
Total sulphur 0,3-3,5 %(²)
Sulphur bound by DEAE cellulose More than 40 %
Absorbance ratio of color bound by 19-34
DEAE cellulose
Absorbance ratio Greater than 50
(A 280/560)
Arsenic Not more than 1 mg/kg
Lead Not more than 2 mg/kg
Mercury Not more than 1 mg/kg
Cadmium Not more than 1 mg/kg
Heavy metals (as Pb) Not more than 25 mg/kg
(¹) Color intensity is defined as the absorbance of a 0,1% (w/v) solution of caramel
color solids in water in a 1 cm cell at 610 nm.
(²) Expressed on equivalent color basis i.e. is expressed in terms of a product having a
color intensity of 0,1 absorbance units.
E150c AMMONIA CARAMEL
Definition: Ammonia caramel is prepared by the controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates (commercially available food grade nutritive sweeteners which are the monomers glucose and fructose and/or polymers thereof, e.g., glucose syrups, sucrose, and/or invert syrups, and dextrose) with or without acids or alkalis, in the presence of ammonium compounds (ammonium hydroxide, ammonium carbonate, ammonium hydrogen carbonate and ammonium phosphate); no sulphite compounds are used.
Description: Dark brown to black liquids or solids
Purity
Color bound by DEAE cellulose Not more than 50 %
Color bound by phosphoryl cellulose More than 50 %
Color intensity(¹) 0,08-0,36
Ammoniacal nitrogen Not more than 0,3 %(²)
4-methylimidazole Not more than 250 mg/kg(²)
2-acetyl-4-tetrahydroxy-butylimidazole Not more than 10 mg/kg(²)
Total sulphur Not more than 0,2 %(²)
Total nitrogen 0,7-3,3 %(²)
Absorbance ratio of color bound by 13-35
phosphoryl cellulose
Arsenic Not more than 1 mg/kg
Lead Not more than 2 mg/kg
Mercury Not more than 1 mg/kg
Cadmium Not more than 1 mg/kg
Heavy metals (as Pb) Not more than 25 mg/kg
(¹) Color intensity is defined as the absorbance of a 0,1% (w/v) solution of caramel
color solids in water in a 1 cm cell at 610 nm.
(²) Expressed on equivalent color basis i.e. is expressed in terms of a product having a
color intensity of 0,1 absorbance units.
E150d SULPHITE AMMONIA CARAMEL
Definition:Sulphite ammonia caramel is prepared by the controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates (commercially available food grade nutritive sweeteners which are the monomers glucose and fructose and/or polymers thereof, e.g., glucose syrups, sucrose, and/or invert syrups, and dextrose) with or without acids or alkalis in the presence of both sulphite and ammonium compounds (sulphurous acid, potassium sulphite, potassium bisulphite, sodium sulphite, sodium bisulphite, ammonium hydroxide, ammonium carbonate, ammonium hydrogen carbonate, ammonium phosphate, ammonium sulphate, ammonium sulphite, and ammonium hydrogen sulphite).
Description: Dark brown to black liquids or solids
Purity
Color bound by DEAE cellulose More than 50 %
Color intensity 0,10-0,60
Ammoniacal nitrogen Not more than 0,6 %(²)
Sulphur dioxide Not more than 0,2 %(²)
4-methylimidazole Not more than 250 mg/kg(²)
Total nitrogen 0,3-1,7 %(²)
Total sulphur 0,8-2,5 %(²)
Nitrogen/sulphur ratio of alcohol precipitate 0,7-2,7
Absorbance ratio of alcohol precipitate (³) 8-14
Absorbance ration (A 280/560) Not more than 50
Arsenic Not more than 1 mg/kg
Lead Not more than 2 mg/kg
Mercury Not more than 1 mg/kg
Cadmium Not more than 1 mg/kg
Heavy metals (as Pb) Not more than 25 mg/kg
(¹) Color intensity is defined as the absorbance of a 0,1% (w/v) solution of caramel
color solids in water in a 1 cm cell at 610 nm.
(²) Expressed on equivalent color basis i.e. is expressed in terms of a product having a
color intensity of 0,1 absorbance units.
(³) Absorbance ration of alcohol precipitate is defined as the absorbance of the precipitate at
280 nm divided by the absorbance at 560 nm (1cm cell).