Blue raspberry flavor



Blue raspberry is a manufactured flavoring and food coloring for candy, snack foods, syrups, and soft drinks. The color does not derive from any species of raspberry, however the flavor is intended to mimic that of a blackcap raspberry. Its flavor was developed using "mostly esters of the banana, cherry, and pineapple variety," and sugar is commonly added to create taste appeal for the blue raspberry flavoring.

Food products labeled as blue raspberry flavor are commonly dyed with a bright blue synthetic food coloring, such as brilliant blue FCF (also called Blue #1) having European food coloring number E133. The blue color was used to differentiate raspberry-flavored foods from cherry-, watermelon-, and strawberry-flavored foods, each of which is red. The use of blue dye also partially is due to the FDA's 1976 banning of amaranth-based Red Dye No. 2, which had previously been heavily used in raspberry-flavored products.

Blue raspberry flavor and color were first used in the United States in 1958 to add interest to snow cones. Regulatory agencies, such as the US Food and Drug Administration, provide guidelines on artificial flavors and colors for manufacturers out of concern for consumer safety, and have approved the use of blue raspberry as a safe ingredient since 1969.