also: Mixed carotenes · E160a · Beta-carotene · Carotene
The orange of carrots, used to make margarine and cheese look yellow. High-dose supplements raised lung cancer in smokers, and a 2026 study linked the added colour to more cancer.
Scan a barcode to check a food for carotenes (mixed). NutraSafe Pro · £3.99/month · iOS
Salt, Paprika, Coriander, Flavour Enhancer (E621), Mustard, Rice Flour, Onion Powder, Celery, Anti-Caking Agent (E551), Pimento, Colour (E160c), Chilli Extract
High-dose beta-carotene supplements raised lung cancer risk in heavy smokers and asbestos workers.
6,106
of the 43,325 UK supermarket foods we checked declare E160 in their ingredients
That is 14%, counted by its code or its name. The count includes every form of E160 (E160a, E160b, E160c, E160d, E160e, E160f).
Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted
Why it’s worth knowing. High-dose beta-carotene supplements raised lung cancer risk in heavy smokers and asbestos workers. A 2026 French study also linked beta-carotene as an added colour to more cancer, including breast cancer. The food colour amounts are far smaller than supplement doses.
Carotenes are the orange-yellow pigments in carrots, palm fruit and some algae. For food they are extracted from these sources or made synthetically. Beta-carotene is the main one, with smaller amounts of alpha-carotene and other carotenoids. They dissolve in fat, not water. The body turns beta-carotene into vitamin A as it needs it.
It colours food yellow to orange. Because it dissolves in fat, it spreads through oils and fats in the food. Light breaks it down, so colours can fade on the shelf. Once absorbed, the gut turns some into vitamin A, and does less of this when the body already has enough, so beta-carotene from food does not cause vitamin A poisoning.
Margarine, spreads and butter substitutes (for their yellow colour), processed and melted cheese, flavoured yoghurts and dairy desserts, ice cream, soft drinks and squash, sweets, cakes and biscuits, and powdered drinks and soups. UK labels call it carotenes, mixed carotenes, beta-carotene or E160a.
The NutriNet-Santé study followed 105,260 French adults for more than seven years and tracked the colours in what they ate. People with higher intake of beta-carotene as an added colour (E160a) had 16% more cancer overall and 41% more breast cancer. This is one observational study and shows a link, not proof that the colour causes cancer. It is about the added colour, not carrots and other vegetables.
Among 105,260 French adults followed from 2009 to 2023, higher intake of beta-carotene as a food colour (E160a) was linked to a 16% higher risk of cancer overall and a 41% higher risk of breast cancer.
Two large randomised trials found that heavy smokers and asbestos workers taking 20 to 30mg of beta-carotene a day had more lung cancer and more deaths than those on a dummy pill. The ATBC study found 18% more lung cancer. The CARET trial was stopped early after 28% more lung cancers and 17% more deaths. Those doses are far above what a food colour supplies. In 2024 European reviewers could not set an upper limit for beta-carotene supplements and advised smokers to avoid them.
Male smokers given 20mg of beta-carotene a day had 18% more lung cancer than those on a dummy pill, over a median of 6.1 years.
Smokers and asbestos workers given 30mg of beta-carotene plus vitamin A a day had 28% more lung cancer and 17% more deaths, and the trial was stopped early.
Reviewers could not set an upper limit for beta-carotene supplements because the lung cancer dose-response data were not enough, and recommended smokers avoid supplements containing it.
The lung cancer findings came from high supplement doses. European reviewers found no sign of harm from beta-carotene in ordinary food, and studies link eating more carotenoid-rich food with less lung cancer in people not taking supplements. In 2012 reviewers said use as a food colour was not a concern as long as the colour plus supplements stay within what a carotenoid-rich diet gives, about 5 to 10mg a day.
Reviewers judged use as a food colour not a safety concern provided intake from the colour plus supplements stays at about 5 to 10mg a day, the amount in a diet rich in carotenoids.
Reviewers found no sign that beta-carotene from ordinary diet is linked to harm.
In the ATBC cohort, men not taking supplements who ate more beta-carotene in food had less lung cancer.
Regulators have not set a numerical daily limit for carotenes as a food colour. European reviewers judged that colour use stays within what people eat from orange and yellow vegetables.
No numerical daily limit was set for mixed carotenes or beta-carotene as food colours. Reviewers judged use within normal dietary amounts not a concern.
Eating very large amounts of carotenoids for weeks, typically well over 20mg a day, can turn the skin yellow, especially the palms and soles. It fades when intake falls, and it is not a sign of vitamin A poisoning, because the body limits how much beta-carotene it turns into vitamin A.
Beta-carotene does not cause vitamin A poisoning, because the gut enzyme that converts it slows down when vitamin A stores are full.
Daily limit. None set.
Heavy smokers and people with significant asbestos exposure should avoid beta-carotene supplements, as regulators advise. The amounts from food colour are much smaller than supplement doses and are not what that warning is about. Check supplement labels for beta-carotene, mixed carotenes or E160a.
The research on carotenes has two chapters. Beta-carotene in vegetables carries no harm signal, and eating carotenoid-rich food is linked to less lung cancer. High-dose supplements are different: two large trials found more lung cancer in smokers taking them, and regulators could not set an upper limit for them. The 2026 French study adds a third, newer thread: a link between beta-carotene added as a colour and more cancer, including breast cancer. It is one observational study, but it is about the additive itself, not vegetables or supplements. The molecule is the same in all three, which is why dose and source matter so much here.
No. Carotenes, including mixed carotenes and beta-carotene (E160a), are approved in the UK in a wide range of foods with no set maximum.
Trials in heavy smokers found that high-dose beta-carotene supplements, 20 to 30mg a day, increased lung cancer. Beta-carotene from vegetables has not shown that signal. But a 2026 French study found people who ate more beta-carotene as an added colour had more cancer, including breast cancer. That shows a link, not proof of cause.
Margarine, processed and melted cheese, flavoured yoghurts, ice cream, soft drinks, squash, sweets, cakes, biscuits, soup powders and powdered drinks. Look for carotenes, mixed carotenes, beta-carotene or E160a.
The pigment comes from plants, algae or is made synthetically, so it is vegan in origin. But some water-dispersible beta-carotene is carried in gelatine from cattle or pigs, and the label will not say which carrier was used. Look for a vegan certification if it matters to you.
Last reviewed: 20 June 2026
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