i
Colours E100s.
The Southampton Six (E102, E104, E110, E122, E124, E129) trigger the mandatory UK hyperactivity warning. E150d is the caramel colour in cola. E160c is paprika.
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Additive scanner · UK
Scan any UK packet. We name every E-number in plain English.
Point your camera at a UK barcode. We pick out every additive on the ingredient list, name it in plain English, and where published evidence exists, add what the regulator has said. Source on every flag.
Free download Pro £3.99/month or £34.99/year Cancel any time
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Categories of additive we recognise
Six groups,
480+ entries.
Every additive on a UK label gets categorised by what it does. Colour, preservative, antioxidant, thickener, flavour enhancer, sweetener. The library covers all six.
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Preservatives E200s.
E250 sodium nitrite cures bacon and ham. E211 sodium benzoate preserves drinks. IARC classes processed meat as Group 1, which is why we flag the cured-meat preservatives.
iii
Antioxidants E300s.
E300 is vitamin C. E330 is citric acid. Most are uncontroversial. We label them so you know which line on the label is the antioxidant rather than the colour or the sweetener.
iv
Thickeners and emulsifiers E400s.
Pectin (E440), guar gum (E412), modified starches (E14xx), industrial emulsifiers (E471, E472e). We tag the ones the NOVA literature lists as ultra-processed markers.
v
Flavour enhancers E600s.
MSG (E621), and the disodium ribonucleotide combos (E627, E631) you see in stock cubes and savoury snacks. EFSA tightened the MSG ADI in 2017; the FSA aligned in 2018.
vi
Sweeteners E900s.
Aspartame (E951), sucralose (E955), acesulfame-K (E950). IARC reclassified aspartame as Group 2B in 2023. JECFA kept the existing ADI. We say so on the flag, with both sources.
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What a scan looks like in the diary
Scan a can of cola.
Here's what shows up.
Anyone who's picked up a can and thought "what is E150d and why is it in everything?" is who we built this for. Here's what comes back the moment you scan a 330ml UK can.
Every additive named. Every flag sourced.
The ingredients line is the one the manufacturer printed. We name every additive, add a line on what it does, and the regulator sits at the bottom of every flag.
i.
Point the camera at the can barcode.
The pack opens in the diary.
ii.
Each additive named in normal English.
E150d. E338. Caramel colour. Phosphoric acid.
iii.
Plain-English line on what the research says.
IARC, EFSA, JECFA, FSA. Cited.
iv.
The panel adds to your day.
35g sugar. 139 kcal. Tracked against your NRV.
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What the additive library covers
What you
get.
The library we ship with on day one, and the regulators we cite when we flag something.
Additives in the library
480+
Every E-number we recognise on a UK packet, written in plain English. Where published evidence exists, the source is on the line.
Southampton Six watchlist
6 colours
E102, E104, E110, E122, E124, E129 carry the mandatory UK hyperactivity warning. We flag every one.
Banned in UK food
E171
Titanium dioxide. Banned in UK and EU food since 7 August 2022. Still permitted in toothpaste and some medicines.
Sources on every flag
Cited
EFSA, FSA, NHS, WHO and IARC. So you can trace any claim back to the regulator who wrote it.
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Questions people ask
Frequently
asked.
Five questions we see most often about the additive scanner. Short answers, sources cited.
What does the additive scanner actually show me?
Point your phone at any UK barcode and we surface the full ingredients line in pack order, every additive and E-number picked out with a plain-English line on what it does, and the regulator cited on every flag.
Which additives get specific flags?
The Southampton Six colours (E102, E104, E110, E122, E124, E129) carry the FSA hyperactivity warning. Aspartame (E951) carries the IARC 2023 Group 2B classification alongside the JECFA reaffirmed ADI. Processed-meat nitrites (E249, E250, E251, E252) carry the IARC Group 1 line on processed meat plus the NHS 70g/day cap. E171 titanium dioxide is flagged as banned in UK food since August 2022.
Which UK products work?
Any UK barcode (GTIN/EAN). It is one global barcode database, not a per-retailer integration. Coverage is broad across UK supermarkets and major brands. Smaller indie products may not be in the database; send the missing pack via the in-app report and we add it.
Is the scanner free?
The download is free. The free tier covers barcode scanning, the per-product grade, the additive breakdown with plain-English notes, the public E-number library, and up to 25 food logs a day. NutraSafe Pro is £3.99 a month or £34.99 a year on iOS.
What's an E-number?
An E-number is the code an additive carries on the UK and EU permitted list. The prefix tells you what the additive does: E100s are colours, E200s are preservatives, E300s are antioxidants, E400s are thickeners, E500s are acidity regulators, E600s are flavour enhancers, E900s are sweeteners and miscellaneous.
Scan any UK pack.
We name every E-number in plain English.
Flagged concerns carry the source.
Get NutraSafe on the App Store
→
Free download covers barcode scanning and the additive breakdown. Pro is £3.99 a month on iOS for the AI features, the workouts and the fasting.
iPhone · iOS 17 · Cancel any timeE150d