E124

Ponceau 4R (Cochineal Red A)

Last reviewed: 11 May 2026

Synthetic red azo dye — Southampton Six, banned in the US since 1976

What is E124?

E124 is Ponceau 4R (also called Cochineal Red A — not to be confused with the natural insect-derived cochineal E120). It's a synthetic strawberry-red azo dye derived from petroleum, with a notably low ADI compared to the other Southampton Six dyes.

Also known as: Cochineal Red A, Brilliant Scarlet 4R, New Coccine, C.I. Food Red 7.

It's used because it's stable through heat and light, cheap, and gives the strong strawberry-red tone manufacturers want in glacé cherries and tinned berries.

Where you'll see E124 on a UK label

Sweets and desserts

• Glacé cherries and candied fruit
• Red jelly sweets and gummies
• Strawberry-flavoured desserts and cake mixes
• Icing and decorations

Drinks

• Strawberry milkshakes and milk-shake syrups
• Red soft drinks and cordials
• Some energy drinks

Other foods

• Tinned strawberries and cherries
• Dessert and trifle mixes
• Some sausages — to enhance the pink-red colour
• Packet soups and sauces

Non-food uses

• Children's medicine syrups
• Cosmetics

The Southampton Study and the UK warning rule

The 2007 Southampton Study (published in The Lancet) tested E124 alongside five other dyes — E102, E104, E110, E122, E129 — and the preservative E211 (sodium benzoate), in children aged 3 and 8–9. The study reported increased hyperactivity and reduced attention scores across the general child population, not only children with ADHD diagnoses.

Since 2010, UK and EU food law has required this warning on any product containing one of these six dyes:

"May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children."

The dyes are commonly referred to as the Southampton Six.

Why E124 is banned in the US

The FDA prohibited E124 in 1976 on the back of US National Cancer Institute rodent studies that reported tumour signals at high doses. The regulator concluded the safety data was insufficient to support food use. The dye has never been re-approved in the US — imported US products will not contain it.

The UK and EU position is different: EFSA reduced the ADI in 2009 from 4mg/kg to 0.7mg/kg body weight per day in response to the same family of concerns, but kept the dye permitted with the Southampton warning rather than banning it. E124's ADI is among the lowest of the Southampton Six (only E104 at 0.5mg/kg is lower).

Cross-reactivity with aspirin and NSAIDs

E124 is an azo dye structurally related to salicylates. The published clinical literature describes cross-reactivity in people sensitive to aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) and other NSAIDs. Reported reactions include:

• Hives (urticaria), rashes and itching
• Facial swelling (rare)
• Bronchoconstriction in people with aspirin-induced asthma
• Cross-reactivity with other azo dyes — people who react to E102, E110, E122 or E129 often react to E124

Azo-dye breakdown in the gut

Azo dyes like E124 are reduced by gut bacteria to aromatic amines. The long-term toxicological significance of these breakdown products under chronic dietary exposure is unsettled — and is part of why the FDA position (ban) and EFSA position (lowered ADI + warning) have diverged.

Regulatory status

UK / EU: approved with an ADI of 0.7mg/kg body weight per day (reduced by EFSA in 2009 from 4mg/kg). Southampton warning mandatory.

US: banned for food use since 1976.

Norway, Finland, Iceland: historically restricted.

Who has the strongest reason to avoid E124

• People with aspirin or NSAID intolerance — meaningful cross-reactivity rate
• People with asthma, especially aspirin-triggered asthma
• Children with diagnosed ADHD — Southampton-study evidence
• Anyone reactive to other azo dyes (E102, E110, E122, E129)
• People with chronic urticaria — case reports of worsened hives

Red alternatives on UK labels

Manufacturers replacing E124 typically reach for plant- or insect-derived colours:

• Beetroot extract (E162) — purple-red
• Anthocyanins (E163) — from berries and red cabbage
• Carmine / cochineal (E120) — insect-derived, not vegan
• Paprika extract (E160c) — orange-red
• Lycopene (E160d) — from tomatoes

None carry the Southampton warning.

Reading a UK label

Look for "E124", "Ponceau 4R", "Cochineal Red A", or "colour: E124" in the ingredient list, and look for the FSA warning sentence under the ingredients. The warning is small print, but is mandatory. Imported US products will not contain E124 — it has been banned there since 1976.

Last updated: 11 May 2026