EXBERRY^® colour supplier GNT has welcomed China’s decision to introduce an official industry standard for Colouring Foods.

“Colouring Food Ingredients for the Food Industry (QB/T6500-2024)” came into force nationwide on May 1, 2025, and regulates their production, use, and labeling. It has been developed by the China National Food Industry Association (CNFIA) and China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) alongside GNT and other relevant experts and stakeholders.

Colouring Foods – which were developed by GNT in 1978 – are plant-based, edible concentrates and are used to deliver colour to food, drink, and supplements. China’s new industry standard stipulates that they must be made from fruits, vegetables, plants, or algae that are normally consumed as foodstuffs.

In addition, Colouring Foods can only be created using physical processing methods and without the use of chemical solvents. Unlike most natural colouring solutions, these products must retain the key properties of the raw materials, including colour, taste, and nutritional value. Rigorous testing and quality control measures are also required to ensure that all Colouring Food ingredients meet the highest safety standards.

Due to the way they are produced, the standard classifies Colouring Foods as ingredients rather than additives. This means they qualify for clean and clear label declarations with wordings that reflect the colouring characteristic and the function, such as “carrot colouring ingredient.”

Silke Fallah, Head of Global Regulatory Affairs at GNT Group, said: “This industrial standard is an important step forward for Colouring Foods and a great achievement for getting regulatory clarity for the Chinese market.”

Prior to the introduction of the industry standard for Colouring Foods, Chinese manufacturers had relied on a voluntary group standard. It was issued by the CNFIA in 2017 and gained a high degree of recognition but lacked official industry endorsement.

The CNFIA submitted a project application for the industry standard in 2019 and received approval for its development the following year. It applies to all manufacturers selling food and drink in China and covers issues including technical requirements, inspection rules, labeling and packaging, storage, and transportation of Colouring Food ingredients.

Andreas Thiede, APAC General Manager for GNT Group, said: “Colouring Foods are becoming increasingly popular in China as consumers seek out cleaner labels, so we’re delighted that they now have official industry recognition. Our plant-based EXBERRY® colour portfolio includes a complete spectrum of Colouring Foods that are fully compliant with the new standard. We’re excited to be able to help manufacturers across China take advantage of this key development.”

The Association for the Cannabinoid Industry’s novel foods applications (RP126 and RP127) have been validated by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

The ACI received formal notification from the FSA that both its applications for the authorisation of CBD isolate and distillate ‘fall within the scope of the novel foods regime’ as set out in Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 (as retained) and fulfil the requirements set out in Article 10(2) of that Regulation.

These applications are now regarded as valid, and will now move on to the risk assessment stage to be assessed further.

ACI member applications account for 30 % of the products currently permitted to remain on the market under the novel foods authorisation process.

These applications relate to 320 brands on sale in Britain.

In 2022, the ACI submitted a complete toxicological package and related bioavailability data to the FSA to support the consortium of member applications.

This included the dose range finding study and the OECD408 rodent toxicity study to determine a No Observable Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL), to cover the safety implications of not only CBD, but also the minor cannabinoids and other plant matrices present in these plant-derived products.

Two years on from the novel food application submission deadline, this week’s FSA update comes a year after the food safety body published its first public list of ingestible CBD products deemed temporarily compliant, pending the submission of toxicology data, its risk assessment and acceptance to progress to the validation stage.

Steve Moore, ACI co-founder and strategic counsel, said: “This is a key milestone for the sector and the ACI. The new consumer cannabinoid sector has been set as an important regulatory challenge. Today’s outcome suggests that by collaborating, they are both progressing towards market authorisation for thousands of products but also delivering the safety data the authorities have been crying out for.”

Paul Birch, ACI co-founder, said: “This outcome was only achievable due to the expertise of our regulatory and scientific team led by Dr Parveen Bhatarah and Dr Paul Duffy who have provided exemplary insight and advice throughout this process.”