Blue 1 – Brilliant Blue FCF – is a commercial food dye used in many popular candies and beverages. Some people assume Blue 1 and other food colorants, such as Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6, are not vegan because they are made from insects. However, it is actually the commercial pigment Carmine that is made from crushed Cochineal bugs. Blue 1, like the other aforementioned numbered dyes, is a synthetic dye that is actually derived not from insects but from petroleum, which means Blue 1 is vegan.
Want to know what other food additives are vegan? Check out our Is It Vegan? category.
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