Naturalness is the topic of the year for many in the food and beverage industry. With the FDA's announcement that FD&C Red 3 will no longer be an approved color additive starting in 2027, attacks on synthetic colors across the board have gained new prominence.

The focus now turns to conversion, highlighting any gaps that still exist in the natural rainbow, like stable natural blues. FD&C Blue 1 has long been the go-to choice for unique bright blue hues across food and beverage applications.

Globally, the number of beverage launches using Blue 1 has more than doubled during the past five years with consistent year-over-year increases (Mintel 2025). However, with many manufacturers facing conversion to natural colors, many developers have been feeling the blues without a water-stable natural FD&C Blue 1 alternative.

Introducing Marine Blue Capri
The long-awaited solution has finally arrived thanks to the diligent research and development teams at Sensient Food Color.

Until now, there has been a need for a low pH, light-stable bright blue in the beverage segment to provide a natural replacement for Blue 1.

With Marine Blue Capri, sky blue is no longer the limit for beverages. This unique solution is a bright, clear blue in low pH beverage applications that could be combined with yellows or reds to achieve greens or purples.

Use Cases for Natural Blue
This first-of-its-kind clean label blue solution is unique for a wide range of beverages with acidic conditions.

Marine Blue Capri is designed for optimal performance in ready-to-drink beverage applications like carbonated soft drinks, sports drinks, juices, flavored waters, low ABV alcoholic beverages, and more. Low pH salad dressings and similar condiments may also see improved success compared to standard spirulina and other blues.

Flavor profiles like blueberry, blue raspberry, grape, mint, lime, green apple, kiwi, melon, mojito, and blackberry will all benefit from a new blue solution in beverages.

A Blue to Beat Other Blues
Marine Blue Capri is a vibrant, stable blue shade in applications with low pH and exposure to light, exhibiting minimal precipitation in end products.

Compared to other blues, it is an answer long needed by beverage developers. Butterfly pea flower extract offers bold blues in higher pH conditions but is purple in low pH solutions. Huito provides a different, less bright shade, closer to denim or blue gray. Gardenia provides a less vibrant shade as well and is not permitted for use in the United States or Canada.

Other spirulina-based solutions have been successfully developed for bright blues in different applications, such as Marine Blue for increased heat stability, as well as Blue Microfine for dry mixes, oil-based applications, and dispersions.

Explore a New World of Natural Blue Color
Marine Blue Capri is the newest addition to Sensient's spirulina-based Marine Blue platform. The expert R&D team will continue to close gaps in the natural rainbow with technological innovation and novel color sources