FD&C Yellow No. 6

E number E110INS 110CAS 2783-94-0

Used as a colour.

FD&C Yellow No. 6, known internationally as Sunset Yellow FCF, is a synthetic orange-yellow azo dye. It appears in soft drinks, confectionery, snack foods, sauces and preserves.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of FD&C Yellow No. 6 by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted, with conditions

Subject to batch certification by FDA.

21 CFR 74.706retrieved 2026-09-07
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFAPermitted, with conditions

63 food categories

highest permitted level 1,500 mg/kg

Show every food category
  • 01.1.4 Flavoured Fluid Milk Drinks — 300 mg/kg
  • 01.6.1 Unripened cheese — 300 mg/kg
  • 01.6.2.2 Rind of ripened cheese — 300 mg/kg
  • 01.6.4 Processed cheese — 200 mg/kg
  • 01.6.5 Cheese analogues — 300 mg/kg
  • 01.7 Dairy-based desserts (e.g. pudding, fruit or flavoured yoghurt) — 300 mg/kg
  • 02.1.3 Lard, tallow, fish oil, and other animal fats — 300 mg/kg
  • 02.4 Fat-based desserts excluding dairy-based dessert products of food category 01.7 — 50 mg/kg
  • 03.0 Edible ices, including sherbet and sorbet — 50 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.11 Fruit fillings for pastries — 200 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.5 — 300 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.6 Fruit-based spreads (e.g. chutney) excluding products of food category — 200 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.7 Candied fruit — 200 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.8 Fruit preparations, including pulp, purees, fruit toppings and coconut milk — 100 mg/kg
  • 04.1.2.9 Fruit-based desserts, incl. fruit-flavoured water-based desserts — 50 mg/kg
  • 04.2.1.2 Surface-treated fresh vegetables, (including mushrooms and fungi, roots and tubers, pulses and legumes, and aloe vera), seaweeds and nuts and seeds — 300 mg/kg
  • 04.2.2.6 Vegetable (including mushrooms and fungi, roots and tubers, pulses and legumes, and aloe vera), seaweed, and nut and seed pulps and preparations (e.g. vegetable desserts and sauces, candied vegetables) other than food category 04.2.2.5 — 50 mg/kg
  • 04.2.2.7 Fermented vegetable (including mushrooms and fungi, roots and tubers, pulses and legumes, and aloe vera) and seaweed products, excluding fermented soybean products of food categories 06.8.6, 06.8.7, 12.9.1, — 200 mg/kg
  • 05.1.4 Cocoa and chocolate products — 400 mg/kg
  • 05.2 Confectionery including hard and soft candy, nougats, etc. other than food categories 05.1, 05.3, and 05.4 — 300 mg/kg
  • 05.3 Chewing gum — 300 mg/kg
  • 05.4 Decorations (e.g. for fine bakery wares), toppings (non-fruit), and sweet sauces — 300 mg/kg
  • 06.3 Breakfast cereals, including rolled oats — 300 mg/kg
  • 06.4.3 Pre-cooked pastas and noodles and like products — 300 mg/kg
  • 06.5 Cereal and starch based desserts (e.g. rice pudding, tapioca pudding) — 50 mg/kg
  • 06.8.1 Soybean-based beverages — 300 mg/kg
  • 07.2 Fine bakery wares (sweet, salty, savoury) and mixes — 50 mg/kg
  • 08.1 Fresh meat, poultry, and game — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.2 Processed meat, poultry, and game products in whole pieces or cuts — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.3.1.1 Cured (including salted) non-heat treated processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.3.1.2 Cured (including salted) and dried non-heat treated processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 135 mg/kg
  • 08.3.1.3 Fermented non-heat treated processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.3.2 Heat-treated processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.3.3 Frozen processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 300 mg/kg
  • 08.4 Edible casings (e.g. sausage casings) — 1,500 mg/kg
  • 09.1.1 Fresh fish — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.1.2 Fresh molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.1 Frozen fish, fish fillets, and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.2 Frozen battered fish, fish fillets and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.3 Frozen minced and creamed fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.4.1 Cooked fish and fish products — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.4.2 Cooked molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 250 mg/kg
  • 09.2.4.3 Fried fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.2.5 Smoked, dried, fermented, and/or salted fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 100 mg/kg
  • 09.3.1 Fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms, marinated and/or in jelly — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.3.2 Fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans and echinoderms, pickled and/or in brine — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.3.3 Salmon substitutes, caviar and other fish roe products — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.3.4 Semi-preserved fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans and echinoderms (e.g. fish paste), excluding products of food categories 09.3.1 - 09.3.3 — 300 mg/kg
  • 09.4 Fully preserved, including canned or fermented fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — 300 mg/kg
  • 10.1 Fresh eggs — GMP
  • 10.4 Egg-based desserts (e.g. custard) — 50 mg/kg
  • 12.2.2 Seasonings and condiments — 300 mg/kg
  • 12.4 Mustards — 300 mg/kg
  • 12.5 Soups and broths — 50 mg/kg
  • 12.6 Sauces and like products — 300 mg/kg
  • 13.3 Dietetic foods intended for special medical purposes (excluding products of food category 13.1) — 50 mg/kg
  • 13.4 Dietetic formulae for slimming purposes and weight reduction — 50 mg/kg
  • 13.5 Dietetic foods (e.g. supplementary foods for dietary use) excluding products of food categories — 300 mg/kg
  • 13.6 Food supplements — 300 mg/kg
  • 14.1.4 Water-based flavoured drinks, including "sport," “energy,” or "electrolyte" drinks and particulated drinks — 100 mg/kg
  • 14.2.6 Distilled spirituous beverages containing more than 15% alcohol — 200 mg/kg
  • 14.2.7 Aromatized alcoholic beverages (e.g. beer, wine and spirituous cooler-type beverages, low-alcoholic refreshers) — 200 mg/kg
  • 15.1 Snacks - potato, cereal, flour or starch based (from roots and tubers, pulses and legumes) — 200 mg/kg
CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 110and 62 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

What it is made from

Made from petroleum-derived aromatic intermediates by diazotisation and coupling to a naphthalene sulfonate. No animal-derived material is involved.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian
CAS registry number
2783-94-0
InChIKey
OIQPTROHQCGFEF-UHFFFAOYSA-L
PubChem
CID 17730

Every name it appears under

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

E number

  • E110

INS number

  • 110

CAS registry number

  • 1313437-35-2
  • 2783-94-0

As it appears in regulation

  • FD&C Yellow No. 6

Other names

  • 1351 Yellow
  • 1899 Yellow
  • 2-Naphthalenesulfonic acid, 6-hydroxy-5-((p-sulfophenyl)azo)-, disodium salt
  • Acid Food Yellow 3
  • Acid Yellow TRA
  • Alabaster No. 3
  • C.I. Direct Yellow 11
  • C.I. Food Yellow 3
  • CI Food Yellow 3
  • Cilefa Orange S
  • D and C Yellow 6
  • disodium 6-hydroxy-5-[2-(4-sulfonatophenyl)diazen-1-yl]naphthalene-2-sulfonate
  • Dolkwal Sunset Yellow
  • Dye FDC Yellow No. 6
  • Dye Sunset Yellow
  • E 110
  • Eniacid Sunset Yellow
  • Eurocert Orange FCF
  • FD & C Yellow No. 6
  • FD and C Yellow 6
  • FD and C Yellow No. 6
  • FD&C Yellow 6
  • FD&C Yellow No. 6
  • Food yellow 3
  • Food Yellow 3;Orange Yellow S;CI 15985
  • Food Yellow No.5
  • Gelborange-S
  • H77VEI93A8
  • HD Sunset Yellow FCF
  • Orange II R
  • Orange PAL
  • Orange Yellow S
  • Orange Yellow S. AF
  • Orange Yellow S.fq
  • Para Orange
  • Sodium 6-hydroxy-5-((4-sulfonatophenyl)diazenyl)naphthalene-2-sulfonate
  • Solar radiation color
  • STILBENE YELLOW
  • Sun Orange A Geigy
  • SUN Yellow
  • SUN Yellow A-CE
  • SUN Yellow A-FDC
  • SUN Yellow FCF
  • Sun Yellow G
  • Sunlight Yellow FCF
  • Sunset red pigment
  • Sunset yellow
  • Sunset Yellow (E110)
  • Sunset Yellow FCF
  • Sunset Yellow FCF 6
  • Sunset Yellow FU
  • Sunset Yellow Lake
  • Twilight Yellow
  • Yellow 6
  • Yellow No. 6
  • Yellow Orange S
  • Yellow S
  • Yellow sun
  • Yellow SY for food

Systematic names

  • Disodium (5E)-6-oxo-5-[(4-sulfonatophenyl)hydrazinylidene]naphthalene-2-sulfonate

Hazard reference values

Values set by assessing bodies. A body that has not set a value is not listed here.
TypeValuePopulationAssessed byOpinion
ADI1 mg/kg bw/dayconsumersEFSAnot identified in the dataset

Evidence and how bodies read it

Food additives and hyperactive behaviour in 3-year-old and 8/9-year-old children in the community: a randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial

McCann D, Barrett A, Cooper A, Crumpler D, Dalen L, Grimshaw K, et al.. The Lancet. 2007 doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(07)61306-3

Design
RCT
Model
human
Dose
Two mixtures of four synthetic colours plus sodium benzoate, at doses chosen to reflect typical UK intakes, given in a drink; challenge and placebo periods.
Endpoint
Global hyperactivity aggregate, combining teacher and parent ratings with a computerised attention test.
Funding
UK Food Standards Agency

What it found. Reported a small increase in the composite hyperactivity measure in 3-year-olds and 8/9-year-olds during the additive-challenge periods compared with placebo. The authors described the effects as modest and variable between individuals.

Limitations. The additives were given as mixtures, so the result cannot be attributed to any single colour or to the benzoate. Effect sizes were small relative to the spread between children, adherence differed between age groups, and the trial measured behaviour over short challenge periods rather than long-term outcomes.

How different bodies read the evidence

Positions are paraphrased in each body's own framing. Where they differ, both stand; this site does not adjudicate between them.

  1. EFSA 2008

    Judged the trial to provide limited evidence of a small effect on activity and attention in some children, but held that the mixtures tested did not allow any effect to be attributed to an individual additive, and that the findings did not warrant changing the acceptable daily intakes.

    Action taken: Left intake limits unchanged

    Source document

  2. European Union (legislature) 2008

    Took the same evidence as grounds for a consumer-information measure rather than a change in permitted levels, requiring foods containing these colours to carry the statement that they 'may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children'.

    Action taken: Imposed a mandatory warning statement while leaving the additives authorised

    Source document

Sources for this page

  • ecfr retrieved 2026-09-07
  • gsfa 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/fd-and-c-yellow-no-6.json