Para Red Prompts Rush to the Labs

After news that the illegal dye Para Red has been found in certain food products, and in the wake of a massive withdrawal of products containing Sudan 1, many food companies are understandably nervous about the colour of their ingredients.

"We've had a lot of enquiries about Para Red in particular, but also about other potential contaminants," says Iain Gadsby of Reading Scientific Services Ltd, (RSSL) one of the few laboratories able to test for illegal dyes like Para Red and Sudan 1-4. "There is also equal concern as to whether legal food colours are being used inappropriately, either in the wrong kinds of product, or at the wrong levels. Synthetic dyes like Sudan 1-4, Sudan Orange G, Sudan Red 7B and Para Red, are chemically quite similar and our screening method can detect them all in one go. We use a different method for legal colours like tartrazine, sunset yellow and quinoline yellow."

The Sudan 1 recall has clearly worried companies now keen to make sure they are doing all that's required of them to satisfy the 'due diligence' aspects of their processing operations. However, as RSSL admits, there are literally hundreds of synthetic colours available for legitimate uses outside of the food industry. The cases of Para Red and Sudan 1 show that the food industry needs to be on its guard against all possible adulterants.