Stable brown colour for beverages, bakery, sauces, seasonings, and confectionery.
Herbal Isolates’ Caramel Powder is a concentrated food colouring produced by the controlled heat treatment of food-grade carbohydrates, the same fundamental process that turns sugar brown when you cook it, but carried out under precise conditions to produce a standardized, stable colouring agent.
Available in Type 3 and Type 4, and in single and double strength powder forms, it delivers a consistent brown colour to food and beverage applications without flavour interference at inclusion rates as low as 0.01%. A little goes a long way.
The two types are not interchangeable. E150c carries a positive colloidal charge and is preferred for beer, soy sauce, and salt-rich savoury applications. E150d carries a negative charge and is the standard choice for cola, acidic beverages, and soft drinks. Selecting the right type for your application is the first decision and the content below is designed to help manufacturers make it correctly.
Our Product Variants
Type 4
(E150D – Sulfite Ammonia Process Caramel Colour)
Type 3
(E150C – Ammonia Process Caramel Colour)
Available in single & double strength powder form.
Color Profile
*Caramel colour concentration levels illustrated above are 0.1% diluted in water. Appearance changes by concentration.
Taste
Pungent / Bitter Burnt Sugar
Process
Fresh, unripe pepper berries are handpicked directly from the vines.
The berries are meticulously washed to remove all impurities
They are then hygienically processed within 12-24 hours before the enzymatic activity can set in.
The berries are then air-dried, resulting in dehydrated products that give them a longer shelf life
They can be reconstituted to their original colour and shape by soaking them in lukewarm water.
Applications
Application Fit Table
| Application / Format | How This Product Helps |
|---|---|
| Bakery (biscuits, pastry, glazes) | Golden-to-amber bake colour without egg wash; caramel sweetness in ginger nuts, digestives, and shortbread at 0.5–2% |
| BBQ and teriyaki seasonings | Natural brown colour and sweet-smoky caramel note in BBQ dry rubs, teriyaki glazes, and steak seasoning mixes at 1–3% |
| Savoury brown sauces & gravies | Colour and mild sweetness in gravy powder mixes, brown onion sauce, and mushroom sauce at 1–4% |
| Confectionery (caramel, toffee, fudge) | Authentic caramel and butterscotch flavour concentrate in toffee, fudge, bonbons, and caramel confectionery at 2–8% |
| Instant beverages (malt, coffee, cocoa) | Colour and flavour in instant malt drinks, malted milk, and caramel coffee syrups in dry format |
| Ice cream and dessert toppings | Caramel swirl and topping character in ice cream mix; reconstitutes to smooth caramel sauce on warming |
FORMULATION TIP
For a clean-label BBQ seasoning: combine Caramel Powder (2%), Soy Sauce Powder (2%), HVP Powder (0.8%), and your standard spice base (smoked paprika, garlic, onion). This delivers rich, authentic BBQ colour and depth without E150 caramel colour or artificial smoke flavour — meeting natural and clean-label positioning requirements.
Note: Colour range: light amber (100–200 EBC) to dark brown (500+ EBC) variants available. Both natural caramel flavour and colour contribution confirmed by colorimetric and sensory testing.
Need Help With Formulation?
Our technical team can help select the right type (E150c or E150d) and strength (single or double), match your target colour specification, and advise on dosage for your specific application and processing conditions.
Quality Assurance
Premium Raw Materials with Full Traceability
Rigorous Quality Assurance Throughout Processing
BRC and HACCP Certification
Group Facilities for ETO, Pesticides, 3-MCPD, L.A.B Testing
On-Site Protein Analysis and Moisture Regulation
Caramel Powder is a SavourOn™ ingredient
SavourOn is Herbal Isolates’ signature range of spray-dried flavour-enhancing solutions – built for consistent performance, clean labels, and formulation confidence across every savoury application.
Certifications
FAQs
What is caramel powder and is it the same as caramel flavour powder?
No, these are different ingredients with different functions. Caramel Powder from Herbal Isolates is caramel colour, a food colouring additive (E150c or E150d) produced by controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates. Its primary function is colour, not flavour. It has a faint bitter-burnt note but contributes no meaningful sweet caramel flavour at typical usage levels (0.01–0.1%). Caramel flavour powder, by contrast, is a flavouring ingredient that contributes the sweet, buttery, toffee-like taste of caramel. The two serve entirely different formulation needs.
What is the difference between Type 3 (E150c) and Type 4 (E150d)?
Both are produced by heat treatment of carbohydrates, but with different chemical reactants. E150c (Ammonia Process) uses ammonium compounds without sulfite, producing a positive colloidal charge and reddish-brown colour. E150d (Sulfite Ammonia Process) uses both ammonium and sulfite compounds, producing a negative colloidal charge and deeper brown-black colour. The charge is the practical difference: E150c is stable and compatible in salt-rich, protein-containing, and alcoholic environments (beer, soy sauce, dark savoury sauces). E150d is stable in acidic environments (soft drinks, cola, vinegar-based products). Using the wrong type can cause colour instability, hazing, or precipitation in the finished product.
What is the difference between single strength and double strength?
Strength refers to colour intensity, measured as light absorbance at 610nm. Double strength powder has approximately twice the absorbance of single strength, meaning you need roughly half the inclusion rate to achieve the same colour. For applications where dosage space is tight (instant noodle sachets, concentrated sauce bases), double strength lets you hit colour targets at lower inclusion. Single strength is often easier to handle and dose accurately in lower-volume production environments. Both types perform identically in application once diluted to the same effective colour intensity.
How do I know which type and strength to specify?
Start with the charge question: if your product is acidic (pH <4.5) or a soft drink, E150d. If it’s a beer, soy sauce, or salt-heavy savoury product, E150c. If you’re unsure, share your formulation pH and application environment with our technical team and we’ll recommend the right type. For strength: if you have a target colour specification (absorbance at 610nm, EBC colour units, or a visual colour standard), share it and we can match it. If you don’t have a specification, request samples of both single and double strength in your target type and evaluate in your formulation at 0.05% as a starting point.
What is 4-MEI and do I need to be concerned about it?
4-methylimidazole (4-MEI) is a by-product formed during the production of ammonia-process caramel colours (E150c and E150d). It has been the subject of regulatory attention in California (Prop 65 listing as a carcinogen) and ongoing monitoring by EFSA in Europe. The EU and FDA have not established a strict daily intake limit for 4-MEI in the context of caramel colour, but the EFSA ADI for E150d is 300 mg/kg body weight. At typical food use levels, 4-MEI exposure from caramel colour is well within safety margins according to current regulatory science. If you’re supplying to the US market, particularly California or to buyers with own-label specifications for 4-MEI limits, ask us for batch-specific 4-MEI test data. We can provide this as part of standard CoA documentation.
Is caramel colour (E150c/E150d) vegan and vegetarian?
Yes. Caramel colour is produced from plant-derived carbohydrates (glucose, sucrose, corn syrup, molasses) using heat and chemical reagents. No animal-derived ingredients are used in the production process. It is suitable for vegan and vegetarian formulations. Note: E150d contains sulfite compounds used in production. People with sulfite sensitivity should be aware, though sulfite levels in the finished colour are typically trace amounts. Halal and Kosher certification depends on the specific carbohydrate source and production process; ask for documentation for your specific lot if certification is required.
What is the typical dosage of Caramel Powder in food applications?
Dosage ranges: Beverages (0.01–0.05% in finished drink), instant noodle seasoning sachets (0.05–0.1% of dry mix), bakery dough (0.05–0.2% of dough weight), sauces and gravies (0.05–0.15% of liquid product), dry seasoning blends (0.05–0.15% of blend). Double strength grades achieve these colour targets at roughly half the inclusion. These are starting points — actual dosage depends on your target colour depth, other colorants present, and processing conditions. Run your first trials at 0.05% and adjust from there. A very small change in inclusion has a large visual effect at these low levels.
Is caramel colour stable through retort, baking, and other high-temperature processing?
Yes. Caramel colour is produced under high-temperature conditions, colour stability under heat is intrinsic to the product. It maintains colour intensity through retort sterilisation (121°C, 20+ minutes), baking (200°C), frying (180°C), and UHT pasteurisation. This is one of its main advantages over plant-based natural colourants like annatto or beet, which can fade or shift under aggressive thermal processing.
What makes Herbal Isolates' Caramel Powder different from others?
Herbal Isolates competes on BRC Grade AA certification, our analytical infrastructure for per-batch documentation, and integration within a broader food ingredient system, caramel colour alongside HVP, Soy Sauce Powder, Yeast Extract, and other seasoning ingredients from the same supplier and the same quality framework.
Can I get samples before committing to a commercial order?
Yes. For qualified food manufacturers and brands, we provide free sample kits. Request Sample through this link.