Shaanxi Yuantai Biological Technology Co., Ltd. is one of the most reliable manufacturers and suppliers of cochineal powder in China. With abundant experience, we warmly welcome you to wholesale bulk cochineal powder for sale here from our factory. Quality products and reasonable price are available.

What is Cochineal Red?

Cochineal powder is a pigment extracted from female cochineal insects that parasitize cacti. It is an anthraquinone natural pigment, commonly known as carmine. It is a red pigment extracted by drying and grinding female cochineal insects, and is a rare natural pigment. Due to its bright color and stable physical properties, it is considered one of the safest pigments in the food, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, and textile industries.

Cochineal is an organic compound with the molecular formula C22H20O13. It is a natural pigment derived from female cochineal insects that live on different regions and species of cacti. Cochineal powder ranges in color from pink to purple. As a natural pigment, cochineal is widely used in the production of food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and textiles.

Source and Physicochemical Properties

The core raw material of cochineal red is the female cochineal insect (scientific name: *Dactylopius coccus*), which parasitizes cacti. Peru is the main producing country, accounting for 85%–90% of the world's total production.

Chemical Characteristics:

Composition: The main coloring component is carminic acid, which forms a chelate with aluminum ions to produce cochineal aluminum (carmine red), with the chemical formula C44H43O32CaAl.
Color Variation: The hue changes with pH value; it is orange-yellow under acidic conditions and deep red or purplish-red under neutral or alkaline conditions. The maximum absorption wavelengths are approximately 531nm and 563nm.
Stability: It exhibits excellent light resistance, heat resistance, and antioxidant properties. However, common cochineal aluminum easily precipitates under acidic conditions. After acid modification, it can maintain its reddish-purple color within a pH range of 1.74 to 9.5.

Extraction Process:

After harvesting dried female cochineal insects, the cells are screened and dried. Carmine acid is extracted using water or alcohol, and then aluminum hydroxide is added to precipitate the color lake. Some products undergo pasteurization to kill microorganisms.

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Product Details Table

Product Name	Carmine cochineal	Latin Name	Cochineal
Original Source	Cochineal	CAS No.	1390-65-4
M.W.	492.39	M.F.	C22H20O13
Melting point	136 ℃
Specification	50%
Synonyms	Carmine Red

Source

product-943-312

Safety

As a natural pigment, carmine is considered to have a very high safety profile, being non-carcinogenic and non-teratogenic, with an LD50 > 21.5 g/kgbw. It is the only organic pigment permitted for use in the eye in the United States, and the only natural pigment approved by the FDA for use in food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. It is one of the most enduring pigments, permanently listed in the U.S. Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Catalog.

Product Application

Cosmetics
Carmine can be used in lipsticks, foundations, eyeshadows, eyeliners, nail polish, and baby products.

Carmine, extracted from cochineal insects, is a protein-containing sugar that is easily soluble in water and exhibits good stability to light, heat, and oxygen. It is an excellent colorant for food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and textiles, and is the only natural pigment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in both food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics.

Food
Carmine can also be used in food products such as candies, beverages, and meat products for coloring.

In the food industry, it is generally used in animal feed, wine, bread products, dairy products, candies, and pickles, but its main limitation is that it is insoluble at low pH values.

Pharmaceuticals
Carmine is used in the pharmaceutical industry as a coating material for tablets and microcapsules, as well as a colorant for capsule shells. Carmine can be mixed with yellow, orange, and red pigments, such as curcumin, annatto, paprika, and β-carotene, to create a range of different shades.

Stability

In order to ensure the quality of Cochineal powder pigment, Zhang Jinfeng et al. focused on the effects of pH value, sunlight, temperature, storage, some metal ions and some food additives on the stability of carmine cochineal pigment. The results show that carmine cochineal pigment is an excellent natural edible red pigment. It is bright purple in weak acid or neutral environment, but its hue changes under alkaline condition. When pH value is 5.7, the pigment solution has the maximum absorption at wavelength 494 nm.

Therefore, the determination of pigment price can be used as a reference. The storage stability and thermal stability of pigment were good, but the photostability was poor. After 24 h of direct sunlight, the pigment retention rate was only 18.4%. In addition, the oxidation resistance of the pigment was weak and was greatly affected by metal ions Fe3 +. However, the reducing substance can protect the color of pigment. In addition, carmine cochineal pigment is stable to most food additives and has a wide range of application.

Use scope and standard of carmine cochineal as food additive

Scope of use	Maximum usage	Scope of use	Maximum usage
Flavoured fermented milk	0.05	Cheese	0.1
Blended condensed milk	0.15	Instant grain	0.2
Compound seasoning	1.0	Mixed wine	0.25
Cocoa butter substitute chocolate and similar chocolate products using cocoa butter substitute	0.3	Powdered milk and powdered cream	0.6
Cooked meat products	0.5	Batter, coating powder, frying powder	According to the production needs of appropriate use
Powder round	1.0	Baked goods	0.6
Frozen drink	0.15	Jam	0.6
Convenient for rice and noodle products	0.3	Fat emulsion product
Puffed food	0.1	Cooked nuts and seeds	0.1
Candy	0.3	Convenient for rice and noodle products	0.3
Semi-solid compound seasoning	0.05	everage Category	0.6
Jelly	0.05

Company introduction and certificates obtained

Shaanxi Yuantai Biotechnology Co., Ltd. was established in 2014, mainly supplying herbal extracts, functional cosmetic raw materials, organic products, etc. We have our own factories, R&D and quality inspection teams, and have the conditions for development, production, and quality assurance. At present, we have obtained ISO9001, ISO22000, HALAL, KOSHER, HACCP, FDA and other certificates. Therefore, the quality of our products is guaranteed, and it is our original intention to bring high-quality products to customers.

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