Avoid

E132 — Indigotine

Color

E132 (Indigotine), a color, is rated "avoid": worth avoiding. A synthetic blue dye in ice cream, candy, and baked goods. It does not carry the EU children's warning, and the evidence against it is thinner than for the yellow and red dyes — but California's regulator found it can worsen neurobehavioural problems in some children, and it is a petroleum dye that adds nothing but colour.

What is Indigotine?

A dark blue synthetic dye made from petroleum, also called Indigo Carmine or FD&C Blue No. 2. Used in ice cream, blue candy, cookies, sweets, and some pet foods. Purely cosmetic — it changes how the food looks, nothing else.

What does it do to the body?

Be straight about this one: the human evidence is weaker than for the Southampton dyes, and most people notice nothing. California's health hazard office reviewed the data in 2021 and concluded this dye, along with the other synthetic colours, can cause or worsen hyperactivity and attention problems in some children — but that finding leans more on animal studies and mechanism than on trials in kids. A small minority of people report hives, nausea, or breathing trouble. Most of the dye passes through the gut unabsorbed. The honest case against it is exposure, not proven harm: children eat the most of it, and long-term data is thin.

What regulators say

This dye does not carry the EU's children's warning label — that applies only to six other colours, not this one. EFSA confirmed an acceptable daily intake of 5 mg per kg of body weight per day in 2014. The FDA still permits it as Blue 2, but in April 2025 asked manufacturers to phase it out voluntarily by the end of 2026, and California bans it from school food from the end of 2027 — its last full FDA safety review was in 1983.

Risk rating: Avoid

Known or suspected to cause harm: a substance EFSA or another regulator has flagged, or one restricted in some jurisdictions. Best kept out of a regular diet.

Source: OEHHA (California EPA) — Potential Neurobehavioral Effects of Synthetic Food Dyes in Children (2021) ↗
E-number: E132Category: ColorAlso known as: indigotine, indigo carmine, blue 2

Frequently asked questions

Is E132 (Indigotine) safe?
This dye does not carry the EU's children's warning label — that applies only to six other colours, not this one. EFSA confirmed an acceptable daily intake of 5 mg per kg of body weight per day in 2014. The FDA still permits it as Blue 2, but in April 2025 asked manufacturers to phase it out voluntarily by the end of 2026, and California bans it from school food from the end of 2027 — its last full FDA safety review was in 1983.
What is E132 (Indigotine)?
A dark blue synthetic dye made from petroleum, also called Indigo Carmine or FD&C Blue No. 2. Used in ice cream, blue candy, cookies, sweets, and some pet foods. Purely cosmetic — it changes how the food looks, nothing else.
What does Indigotine do to the body?
Be straight about this one: the human evidence is weaker than for the Southampton dyes, and most people notice nothing. California's health hazard office reviewed the data in 2021 and concluded this dye, along with the other synthetic colours, can cause or worsen hyperactivity and attention problems in some children — but that finding leans more on animal studies and mechanism than on trials in kids. A small minority of people report hives, nausea, or breathing trouble. Most of the dye passes through the gut unabsorbed. The honest case against it is exposure, not proven harm: children eat the most of it, and long-term data is thin.
What are other names for E132?
E132 is also known as indigotine, indigo carmine, blue 2.

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