FDA permits spirulina blue as colour additive

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a petition filed by Mars Inc to permit the use of spirulina extract as a colour additive in candy and chewing gum.

The FDA will amend the colour additive regulation in part 73 Listing of Color Additives Exempt from Certification to provide for the safe use of spirulina blue, an extract made from the dried biomass of the cyanobacteria Arthrospira platensis, for use in candy and chewing gum.

Spirulina, also known as A. platensis, is a blue-green filamentous cyanobacterium that occurs naturally in freshwater and marine habitats and has a long history as a food in many countries. It contains chlorophyll and phycobilins, which absorb sunlight and play a role in photosynthesis. The phycobilins found in spirulina are phycocyanins, which are blue and, together with chlorophyll, give spirulina its characteristic blue-green colour.

The spirulina extract manufactured by Mars contains not less than 10% phycocyanins. The FDA has determined that, because the amount of the colour additive used in food is self-limiting, a specific upper limit for the colour additive or phycocyanin content is not required. Therefore, the FDA is limiting the use of spirulina extract in candy and chewing gum to amounts consistent with good manufacturing practice.

In addition to specification limits for lead, arsenic and mercury, the FDA has stipulated that the colour additive must be negative for microcystin toxin, which is produced by some species of cyanobacteria that could potentially be present in the water where A. platensis is grown and harvested.