Is artificial colour vegan?

Artificial colour is a broad label term used to describe manufactured pigments added to change or enhance the visual appearance of foods and beverages. It is a general regulatory category rather than a single specific chemical, commonly appearing on the ingredient lists of candies, breakfast cereals, sodas, baked goods, and processed snacks.

The verdict is possibly vegan because substances grouped under this term can be derived from plant or animal sources, and food labels typically do not identify the origin. Animal sources include scale insects used to make red carmine pigments, as well as animal byproducts like gelatin or tallow used as carriers and stabilizers. Plant sources include botanical extracts from vegetables and seeds, along with synthetic pigments produced chemically from petroleum or mineral compounds. Because the broad label wording obscures the exact ingredients used, only an official vegan certification on the packaging or direct confirmation from the manufacturer can confirm whether the product is vegan.