E116 is an unassigned code
Multiple primary regulatory sources, including the consolidated text of EU Regulation 1333/2008 (Annex II), the UK Food Standards Agency approved-additives list, the 1995 UK Colours in Food Regulations, and the original 1962 EEC directive on food colouring matters, contain no entry for E116 or for any substance named Brilliant Yellow as a food colour. The UK FSA approved-additives list and the NATCOL food colours legislation reference both confirm the E number sequence in the colour range jumps from E110 directly to E120, with E111-E119 wholly unallocated. No primary EEC, EU, or UK regulatory source has ever assigned E116 to any food substance, including under any transitional or national-only pre-harmonisation authorisation.
Annex II to EU Regulation 1333/2008, as consolidated to June 2024, lists no food additive with the code E116. The colour sequence in Part B runs from E110 to E120 with no intermediate entries.
2024RegulatoryEUR-Lex, Consolidated text of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives, CELEX 02008R1333-20240602
The UK Food Standards Agency approved-additives list contains no entry for E116. The published table of permitted colours jumps directly from E110 to E120 with no intermediate entries.
RegulatoryUK Food Standards Agency, Approved additives and E numbers, food.gov.uk
The UK Colours in Food Regulations 1995 (SI 1995/3124) do not list E116 or any substance named Brilliant Yellow as a permitted colour. Schedule 1 moves from E110 to E120 with no intermediate entries.
1995RegulatoryUK Statutory Instrument 1995 No. 3124, The Colours in Food Regulations 1995, legislation.gov.uk
The NATCOL food colours legislation reference, which covers Directive 94/36/EC and Regulation 1333/2008, lists no substance between E110 and E120. E116 does not appear in the permitted colours annex of Directive 94/36/EC.
RegulatoryNATCOL, Foods Colors Legislation, natcol.org
Direct Yellow 4: the laboratory dye sometimes called Brilliant Yellow
The compound most commonly called 'Brilliant Yellow' outside of food contexts is Direct Yellow 4, a synthetic disazo dye with CAS number 3051-11-4. It has no food regulatory history, no ADI, no EFSA or JECFA evaluation as a food substance, and no approved food use in any jurisdiction. Its applications are in textile dyeing, leather colouring, paper manufacture, and as a pH indicator in scientific assays. There is no published food safety evaluation of Direct Yellow 4 as a food additive.
Direct Yellow 4 (CAS 3051-11-4), sometimes called Brilliant Yellow, is a disazo dye used in textiles, leather, and paper, and as a pH indicator and biosensor in laboratory settings. It has no approved food use and no E number.
LabSigma-Aldrich product record for Brilliant Yellow, CAS 3051-11-4; Wikipedia, Direct Yellow 4
