Catalog explorer

Acesulfame K

Acesulfame K (E950) is a synthetic sweetener roughly 200 times sweeter than sugar, used in soft drinks, chewing gum and desserts — usually blended with another sweetener to mask its aftertaste. It is not metabolised and contributes no calories.

E129

Allura Red AC

Allura Red AC (E129) is a synthetic red azo dye used in sweets, drinks, and desserts. It is one of the six "Southampton" colours the EU requires to carry a warning about possible effects on children’s activity and attention.

E300

Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C)

Ascorbic acid (E300) is vitamin C, added to foods as an antioxidant to prevent browning and preserve colour and nutrients. It is an essential nutrient with a very favourable safety profile and is one of the most benign food additives.

E951

Aspartame

Aspartame (E951) is a low-calorie artificial sweetener about 200× sweeter than sugar, used in diet drinks and sugar-free products. It contains phenylalanine, so it must be avoided by people with phenylketonuria (PKU); in 2023 IARC classified it as "possibly carcinogenic" while EFSA kept its acceptable daily intake unchanged.

E133

Brilliant Blue FCF

Brilliant Blue FCF (E133) is a synthetic blue dye used in sweets, ice cream and drinks. Unlike the six "Southampton" colours it carries no mandatory children's warning, and EFSA set an acceptable daily intake of 6 mg per kg of body weight when it re-evaluated the colour in 2010.

E330

Citric acid

Citric acid (E330) is a mild acid found naturally in citrus fruit and produced industrially by fermentation, used as an acidity regulator and antioxidant in a huge range of foods and drinks. EFSA considers it safe with no numeric intake limit; it is one of the most benign common additives.

E100

Curcumin

Curcumin (E100) is the yellow-orange colour extracted from turmeric root, used in mustards, cheeses, drinks and baked goods. It is one of the few plant-derived colours in common industrial use, and EFSA set an acceptable daily intake of 3 mg per kg of body weight for it.

E635

Disodium 5-ribonucleotides

Disodium 5-ribonucleotides (E635) is a roughly equal blend of disodium guanylate (E627) and disodium inosinate (E631), used with MSG to boost savoury flavour. Because it contains inosinate, the same question applies: the source may be fermentation or fish, and the label will not say.

E627

Disodium guanylate

Disodium guanylate (E627) is a flavour enhancer used alongside MSG, where the pair together taste far stronger than either alone. It is usually made by fermenting plant starch, but it can also be derived from fish or meat — which is why its vegan status is not automatic.

E631

Disodium inosinate

Disodium inosinate (E631) is a flavour enhancer used with MSG in crisps, instant noodles and stock cubes. It is the ribonucleotide most often made from fish or meat rather than by fermentation, and EU labels are not required to say which — the single most common reason vegans query an E-number.

E296

Malic acid

Malic acid (E296) is the sharp-tasting acid that occurs naturally in apples, used industrially to regulate acidity and sharpen flavour in sweets, drinks and fruit products. EFSA classes it as safe and set no numerical acceptable daily intake for it.

E621

Monosodium glutamate (MSG)

Monosodium glutamate (E621) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, used as a savoury ("umami") flavour enhancer in snacks, sauces, and ready meals. EFSA considers it safe at normal intakes; reports of "MSG symptom complex" have not been confirmed in controlled studies.

E124

Ponceau 4R

Ponceau 4R (E124) is a synthetic red azo dye used in sweets, desserts and soft drinks. Despite being sold as "Cochineal Red A" it has nothing to do with cochineal insects. It is one of the six colours the EU requires to carry a children's activity-and-attention warning.

E301

Sodium ascorbate

Sodium ascorbate (E301) is a salt of vitamin C used as an antioxidant to stop fats and colours going off — very often in cured meat, where it also limits the formation of nitrosamines. EFSA classes the ascorbates as safe with no numerical acceptable daily intake.

E211

Sodium benzoate

Sodium benzoate (E211) is a preservative used in acidic foods and soft drinks to stop mould and yeast. EFSA considers it safe at permitted levels; in acidic drinks that also contain vitamin C it can form trace benzene, which manufacturers control by reformulation.

E250

Sodium nitrite

Sodium nitrite (E250) is a curing salt used in bacon, ham, and cured meats to fix colour and prevent botulism. Under cooking and digestion it can form nitrosamines, some of which are carcinogenic, and the WHO/IARC classifies processed meat as carcinogenic to humans.

E420

Sorbitol

Sorbitol (E420) is a sugar alcohol used to sweeten sugar-free gum, sweets and diabetic products. Because it is poorly absorbed it is high-FODMAP and a common trigger for IBS symptoms, and EU labels must warn that excessive consumption may have a laxative effect.

E220

Sulfur dioxide

Sulfur dioxide (E220) and sulfites are preservatives used in dried fruit, wine, and processed potato products to prevent browning and microbial growth. Sulfites are a recognised allergen that must be labelled in the EU above 10 mg/kg, and they can trigger asthma-like reactions in sensitive people.

E110

Sunset Yellow FCF

Sunset Yellow FCF (E110) is a synthetic orange-yellow azo dye used in soft drinks, sweets, and snacks. Like tartrazine, it is one of six colours the EU requires to carry a children’s activity-and-attention warning, and it can trigger reactions in aspirin-sensitive individuals.

E102

Tartrazine

Tartrazine (E102) is a synthetic lemon-yellow azo dye used to colour soft drinks, sweets, and sauces. It is one of six colours the EU requires to carry a warning about possible effects on children’s activity and attention, and it can provoke pseudo-allergic reactions in aspirin-sensitive people.

E171

Titanium dioxide

Titanium dioxide (E171) is a white pigment once used to brighten sweets, chewing gum, and sauces. In 2021 EFSA concluded it could "no longer be considered safe" as a food additive because a genotoxicity concern could not be ruled out, and the EU banned it in food from 2022.

Cream

Cream is the fat-rich layer skimmed from milk, used in sauces, desserts, and coffee. It is an animal-derived dairy product containing lactose and milk proteins, so it is unsuitable for vegan diets and can affect people with lactose intolerance or a milk allergy.

Egg

Eggs are a whole animal food used widely in baking, sauces, and pasta for binding, leavening, and emulsifying. As an animal product they are excluded from vegan diets, and egg is one of the most common food allergens, especially in children.

Hazelnut

Hazelnuts are a tree nut used whole, chopped, or as a paste in chocolate spreads and confectionery. Hazelnut is one of the major recognised food allergens, capable of triggering reactions from mild oral itching to anaphylaxis, and must be avoided by anyone with a tree nut allergy.

Onion

Onions are a widely used allium vegetable providing savoury flavour in cooked dishes, sauces, and stocks. They are one of the most concentrated dietary sources of fructans, making onion one of the most common high-FODMAP triggers for people managing IBS.

Wheat flour

Wheat flour is ground wheat kernel, the base of bread, pasta, and most baked goods. It contains gluten, making it unsafe for people with coeliac disease or wheat allergy, and it is a major source of fructans, a fermentable carbohydrate that can trigger IBS symptoms.

Whey powder

Whey powder is the dried protein fraction left over from cheese-making, used in protein supplements, baked goods, and processed foods. Because it comes from milk, it is not vegan and contains milk protein (an allergen) and lactose, so it is relevant for lactose intolerance and low-FODMAP diets.

Citral

Citral is a lemon-scented compound from lemongrass and citrus oils, used to add a fresh scent. It is an EU-labelled fragrance allergen and a known skin sensitiser, often formulated with quenchers to reduce reactions, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Citronellol

Citronellol is a rose-like fragrance compound found in geranium and rose oils. Like other declared fragrance allergens it must be named on EU cosmetic labels, and it can cause allergic contact dermatitis, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Cocamidopropyl Betaine

Cocamidopropyl betaine (CAPB) is a mild, coconut-derived surfactant used to cleanse and boost foam in shampoos and body washes. It is generally gentle, but manufacturing impurities can make it a contact allergen — it was named Allergen of the Year in 2004 — so it is flagged for sensitive skin.

Coconut oil

Coconut oil (Cocos Nucifera Oil) is a rich plant oil used as an emollient in creams, cleansers, and hair products. It is nourishing but is often rated comedogenic, so it can clog pores in some people — it is flagged as a caution for acne-prone skin.

Coumarin

Coumarin is a sweet, hay- or vanilla-scented compound found in tonka bean and many plants, widely used in perfumes. It is one of the fragrance allergens the EU requires to be named on cosmetic labels, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Eugenol

Eugenol is a warm, clove-scented compound from clove and cinnamon oils, used as fragrance. It is one of the fragrance allergens the EU requires to be labelled and a recognised cause of contact allergy, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Fragrance

"Parfum" (or "Fragrance") on a label is an umbrella term for a scent blend a brand need not disclose ingredient-by-ingredient. Fragrance is the single most common cause of cosmetic contact allergy, so it is flagged for fragrance-allergic and for sensitive or eczema-prone skin.

Geraniol

Geraniol is a sweet, rose-scented compound found in rose and citronella oils and used widely as fragrance. It is one of the fragrance allergens the EU requires to be named on cosmetic labels and a recognised cause of allergic contact dermatitis, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Isopropyl Myristate

Isopropyl myristate is a lightweight emollient and texture agent that helps products spread and absorb quickly. It is one of the ingredients most consistently rated as comedogenic (pore-clogging) in the literature, so it is flagged as a caution for acne-prone skin.

Lanolin

Lanolin is a waxy emollient from sheep’s wool, used to soften and seal moisture into skin and lips. It is an effective moisturiser but can be comedogenic and is an occasional contact allergen, so it is flagged for acne-prone and sensitive skin.

Limonene

Limonene is a citrus-scented compound found in many essential oils and added as fragrance. It is one of the fragrance allergens the EU requires to be named on the label, and once oxidised by air it becomes a stronger skin sensitiser — so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Linalool

Linalool is a floral-scented compound found in lavender, bergamot, and many essential oils, added to products as fragrance. Like limonene it is an EU-labelled fragrance allergen that becomes more sensitising once oxidised by air, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.

Methylchloroisothiazolinone

Methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI) is a preservative, usually blended with methylisothiazolinone as "MCI/MI" (Kathon CG). It is a potent contact sensitiser restricted to rinse-off products in the EU, so it is flagged for sensitive and eczema-prone skin.

Methylisothiazolinone

Methylisothiazolinone (MI) is a preservative used in rinse-off cosmetics and wet wipes. A sharp rise in contact allergy led the EU to ban it from leave-on products, and it remains a significant sensitiser — so it is flagged for sensitive and eczema-prone skin.

Oakmoss extract

Oakmoss (Evernia Prunastri) is a lichen extract prized in perfumery for its deep, earthy base note. It is one of the more potent fragrance allergens, and the EU restricts its sensitising constituents, so it is flagged for fragrance allergy and sensitive skin.