Yellow 5 (Tartrazine, E102)

What is Yellow 5?

Yellow 5 is an azo dye — a synthetic color built from petroleum-derived chemicals — that produces a clear lemon-to-canary yellow. In the US it is FD&C Yellow No. 5; in Europe and most of the rest of the world it is tartrazine (E 102).

Like other certified colors it comes in two forms: a water-soluble dye for drinks, gelatins and syrups, and an aluminum-bound lake (Yellow 5 Lake) for coatings, frostings and candy shells where the color must not bleed. Every batch sold in the US must pass FDA batch certification for purity.

One rule sets Yellow 5 apart from every other food color in the US: it cannot hide behind "artificial color." FDA regulations require it to be declared by name in the ingredient list — even in butter, cheese and ice cream, which are otherwise exempt from naming colors.

Why is Yellow 5 used in food?

Yellow 5 is cheap, extremely stable in light, heat and acid, and intensely colored, so a very small quantity produces a vivid, consistent shade. It shows up in soft drinks and sports drinks, candy, boxed macaroni and cheese, chips and snack foods, pickles, cake mixes, gelatin desserts, condiments and cereals — and it is frequently blended with Blue 1 to make green or with Red 40 to make orange.

The natural substitutes are turmeric (curcumin), annatto, beta-carotene and safflower. They cost more, can shift flavor, and fade faster — which is why reformulated products often look softer or more mustard-toned than the originals.

Is Yellow 5 safe? What the research says

What regulators say. FDA lists Yellow 5 as a permitted, batch-certified color additive. EFSA re-evaluated tartrazine in 2009 and concluded the data gave no reason to revise the acceptable daily intake of 7.5 mg per kg of body weight set by its predecessor committee.

Intolerance reactions. This is the distinctive issue with Yellow 5. EFSA's 2009 opinion concluded that tartrazine "appears to be able to elicit intolerance reactions in a small fraction of the exposed population," and — importantly — that sensitive individuals may react at doses within the ADI. Reported reactions are hives, swelling and in some cases asthma symptoms. This is why US drug labeling rules require prescription products containing Yellow 5 to warn that it may cause allergic-type reactions including bronchial asthma in susceptible people, noting that such sensitivity is uncommon but occurs more often in people who are also sensitive to aspirin. The same reasoning is behind the food-labeling requirement to name the dye.

Hyperactivity in children. Tartrazine was one of the seven additives in the 2007 Southampton study (McCann et al., The Lancet), where mixtures of synthetic colors plus sodium benzoate increased hyperactive behavior in some 3- and 8–9-year-old children. EFSA found the effects small, inconsistent between the two mixtures and age groups, and impossible to attribute to any single additive, so it did not change the ADI — but the EU did add a mandatory warning label to Yellow 5 and five other colors. In 2021 California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment reviewed the wider evidence and concluded synthetic dyes can cause or worsen neurobehavioral problems in some children.

Cancer. Yellow 5 is not classified as a carcinogen by FDA, EFSA or IARC. FDA's purity specifications and batch certification address concerns about contaminants in the dye itself.

Bottom line: for most people, normal amounts are considered safe by regulators. The people with a concrete reason to avoid it are the small group who react to it, and parents of children who seem sensitive to dyes — for whom a dye-free trial is a reasonable, low-risk experiment.

Yellow 5 regulation: US vs EU

Yellow 5 is in the middle of the most active period of US color regulation in decades, but it is not banned. On April 22, 2025, HHS and FDA announced a plan to work with industry to remove six petroleum-based dyes — Yellow 5 among them — from the US food supply; FDA's own tracker, updated in September 2026, now gives the target as the end of 2027 and lists 28 companies and trade associations that have made commitments. The phase-out is voluntary: FDA has not revoked the authorization for Yellow 5, which also appears on FDA's list of chemicals under post-market review.

States have moved faster, and the courts have pushed back. West Virginia's HB 2354 bans seven dyes including Yellow 5 from retail sale beginning January 1, 2028, but a federal court blocked that part of the law in December 2025; the separate school-nutrition restriction has been in effect since August 1, 2025. California's AB 2316 bars six dyes including Yellow 5 from school food starting December 31, 2027. Texas SB 25 requires warning labels on products whose labels are developed from January 1, 2027, and a federal court limited its enforcement in February 2026. Check the latest status: this is changing quickly.

Who should limit or avoid Yellow 5?

• People who react to tartrazine. A small fraction of the population reports hives, swelling or asthma symptoms, and EFSA noted reactions can occur at doses within the ADI. Because US law requires Yellow 5 to be named, this group can actually avoid it reliably.
• People with aspirin sensitivity. US drug labeling notes that tartrazine sensitivity, while uncommon, is seen more often in this group.
• Children with ADHD or who seem to react to dyes. A short dye-free trial is low-risk and reasonable; discuss it with your pediatrician rather than making a permanent diagnosis from it.
• Anyone cutting back on ultra-processed food. Yellow 5 is concentrated in candy, soft drinks, snack foods and boxed mixes, so avoiding it tends to improve the overall diet as a side effect.