Amaranth
What you need to know
Amaranth is a dark red-purple synthetic colour — no relation to the grain of the same name.
The United States banned it from food in 1976 (it was “FD&C Red No. 2”) after animal studies raised cancer questions that could not be resolved. Australia, the EU and Canada still permit it, but the EU cut its acceptable daily intake to one of the lowest of any colour.
Because the safe-intake margin is small, regulators restrict it to a short list of products.
Where it stands, by region
The same additive can be approved in one country and banned in another. This is the divergence that matters most.
| 🇦🇺AU / NZ | Approved Permitted with strict limits (FSANZ). |
| 🇪🇺EU | Restricted Permitted only in a narrow range of products; ADI cut to 0.15 mg/kg bw/day in 2010. |
| 🇺🇸US | Banned Banned from food since 1976 (former FD&C Red No. 2). |
| 🇨🇦CA | Approved Permitted; must be declared by name. |
Health evidence
How settled the science is for each area — not how dangerous. “Unknown” means not enough good studies yet.
Trisodium 3-hydroxy-4-[(4-sulfonato-1-naphthyl)azo]naphthalene-2,7-disulfonate. Former FD&C Red No. 2 (US, delisted 1976). ADI 0.15 mg/kg bw/day (EFSA, 2010).