Beta -carotene

E number E160aCAS 7235-40-7

Beta-carotene is an orange pigment found in carrots and many other plants, used both as a colouring and as a source of vitamin A. It colours margarine, drinks, dairy products and confectionery.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Beta -carotene by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted21 CFR 184.1245retrieved 2026-09-07
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFANot listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited.

What it is made from

Obtained three ways, and the route is not usually stated on a label: chemical synthesis from petroleum-derived intermediates, fermentation using the fungus Blakeslea trispora or the alga Dunaliella salina, or extraction from plants such as carrots and palm fruit. Suspensions may be carried in gelatin, which would make that specific preparation non-vegetarian.

  • Vegan status depends on the source
  • Vegetarian status depends on the source

This is not an omission. What this additive is made from is not fixed — depending on the manufacturer it may be plant, animal or microbial in origin, nobody is required to say which, and the same product can change source between production runs. Ask the manufacturer if it matters to you; a label cannot answer it.

CAS registry number
7235-40-7
InChIKey
OENHQHLEOONYIE-JLTXGRSLSA-N
PubChem
CID 5280489

Every name it appears under

69 recorded names. A label may use any of them.

E number

  • E160a

CAS registry number

  • 116-32-5
  • 7235-40-7

As it appears in regulation

  • Beta -carotene

Other names

  • .beta.,.beta.-Carotene
  • .beta.-Carotene
  • .beta.-Carotene, all-trans-
  • 01YAE03M7J
  • 9-cis--Carotene
  • Algal carotenes
  • all-trans-.beta.-Carotene
  • all-trans-beta-Carotene
  • b,b-Carotene
  • b-Carotene
  • beta Carotene
  • beta,beta-Carotene
  • Beta-carotene
  • beta-Carotene, all-trans-
  • beta-Carotin
  • beta-Karotin
  • Betacarotene
  • Betacarotene (INN)
  • Betacaroteno
  • Betacarotenum
  • BetaVit
  • C.I. Food Orange 5
  • Carotaben
  • Caroten base 35468
  • Carotene,beta
  • CARTB
  • CI Food Orange 5
  • E 160a(i)
  • E 160a(ii)
  • E 160a(iv)
  • E-160a(iii)
  • Eldon
  • Food orange 5
  • Gerard
  • Golden rose
  • Ins no.160a(iii)
  • Ins-160a(iii)
  • Karotin
  • KPMK
  • Lucaratin
  • Lucarotin 30sun
  • Lumitene
  • Lurotin
  • Max Caro
  • MaxCaro
  • Mixed carotenes from algae
  • Mixed carotenes from natural strains of edible plants
  • Natural Yellow 26
  • Nature's plus
  • Optimun
  • Plant carotenes
  • Provatene
  • Provatenol
  • Provitamin A
  • Rovimix .beta.-carotene
  • ROVIMIX beta-CAROTENE
  • Serlabo
  • Solatene
  • Solatene (caps)
  • Zlut prirodni 26

Systematic names

  • (all-E)-1,1'-(3,7,12,16-Tetramethyl-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-octadecanonaene-1,18-diyl)bis(2,6,6-trimethylcyclohexene)
  • 1,3,3-trimethyl-2-[(1E,3E,5E,7E,9E,11E,13E,15E,17E)-3,7,12,16-tetramethyl-18-(2,6,6-trimethylcyclohexen-1-yl)octadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaenyl]cyclohexene
  • 2,2'-((1E,3E,5E,7E,9E,11E,13E,15E,17E)-3,7,12,16-tetramethyloctadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaene-1,18-diyl)bis(1,3,3-trimethylcyclohex-1-ene)
  • 3,7,12,16-tetramethyl-1,18-bis(2,6,6-trimethyl-1-cyclohexenyl)-octadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaene
  • Cyclohexene, 1,1'-(3,7,12,16-tetramethyl-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-octadecanonaene-1,18-diyl)bis(2,6,6-trimethyl-, (all-E)-

Hazard reference values

No reference value for this substance in the sources we hold.

Evidence and how bodies read it

Studies, and the differing conclusions regulators drew from them, are curated by hand rather than machine-read, and none has been written for this substance yet.

Sources for this page

  • ecfr retrieved 2026-09-07

Full licence terms and publisher details on Sources. How this page is built and updated: Method.

Machine-readable:/api/v1/additives/beta-carotene.json