The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved GNT USA Inc.’s Color Additive Petition (CAP) 2C0297, greatly expanding the use of spirulina extract as a natural blue coloring ingredient in food and beverage applications. While the original regulation [21 CFR 73.530] limited the use of spirulina extract to candy and chewing gum, the amended regulation allows for the safe use of spirulina extract in: “frostings, ice cream and frozen desserts, dessert coatings and toppings, beverage mixes and powders, yogurts, custards, puddings, cottage cheese, gelatin, breadcrumbs and ready-to-eat cereals (excluding extruded cereals).” 

As a pioneer in natural color solutions developed exclusively from edible fruits, vegetables and plants, GNT’s notable raw material innovation lead to the early development of a natural blue and green color portfolio using spirulina. GNT USA’s CEO, Stefan Hake, added, “Many perceive spirulina as a new coloring product. However, because GNT was early to develop this product over 20 years ago, we not only have the required processing technology and production capacity to deliver our high-quality products across the globe, we also have vast technical expertise to make spirulina work in a great number of applications”. 

GNT’s spirulina-based color solutions have long been used in European food and beverage products. All of GNT’s products are simple concentrates of colorful fruits, vegetables and plants—going through physical processing with water and avoiding the use of chemical solvents or other additives. As such, GNT’s spirulina-based color solutions are considered “Colouring Foods” across the EU and enjoy worldwide regulatory acceptance due to their innately clean-label pedigree.