Lake colours, also called lake pigments, are a type of food colour produced by blending a dye with a substrate, such as calcium carbonate or aluminium oxide. This resulting pigment is not soluble in water and is typically used in products that have fats and oils, such as butter and chocolate. Lake colours by Alliance Organics LLP are highly stable compared to other food colours, which makes them suitable for products with a long shelf life.
We take great pride in the exceptional dispersion properties of our Lakes, which set them apart from the competition. We achieve this by producing our Lakes in specialized mills that allow us to precisely control the particle size, resulting in a product that offers unparalleled dispersion in dry powder mixes.
The even distribution of particles within a medium, or dispersion, is critical in determining the colour value of our Lakes. When a Lake is well dispersed, its colour is evenly distributed throughout the mix, resulting in a higher colour value. This is why we put great care into optimizing our Lakes for dispersion.
Our specialized mills use cutting-edge technology to break down the particles to the desired size, resulting in a product that offers exceptional colour dispersion in dry powder mixes. Our commitment to quality and innovation has earned us a reputation as a trusted name in the industry.
Whether you need Lakes for food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, or personal care products, our Lakes are the ideal choice thanks to their superior dispersion properties. Choose Alliance Organics LLP for Lakes, which offers exceptional quality and performance.
Low Dye or LD
12% to 18%
Mid dye or MD
22% to 30%
High Dye or HD
32% to 40%
Lake colours are water-insoluble pigments that are derived from water-soluble dyes. They are widely used in the food industry to add colour to various products, such as baked goods, confectionery, beverages, and dairy products. Lake colours are also used in the pharmaceutical industry to colour tablets, capsules, and syrups.
In the cosmetics industry, lake colours are used to add colour to a variety of products, such as lipsticks, eye shadows, and nail polishes. They are also used in the textile industry to dye fabrics, yarns, and fibres.
One of the primary benefits of using lake colours is their excellent stability, which means that they can withstand high temperatures, light, and pH changes. This makes them ideal for use in a wide range of applications where colour stability is critical.
At Alliance Organics LLP, we offer a wide range of lake colours, including lake Allura red, lake brilliant blue, lake carmoisine, lake erythrosine, and lake quinoline yellow. All our products are made from high-quality ingredients and undergo rigorous testing to ensure they meet the highest standards of quality and safety.
Wax Coating of cheese
Bakery Products
Pharmaceutical Tablets
Cosmetic & Care Products
Snacks and Seasoning
Spices
Coating on Chocolates
Allocol™ Lake Quinoline Yellow
Lake Quinoline Yellow
| E 104
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Confectionery Coatings • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Quinoline Yellow
Lake Quinoline Yellow
| E 104
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Quinoline Yellow
Lake Quinoline Yellow
| E 104
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Tartrazine
Lake Tartrazine
| E 102
F.D & C. No. Yellow 5 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Confectionery Coatings • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Tartrazine
Lake Tartrazine
| E 102
F.D & C. No. Yellow 5 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Confectionery Coatings • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Tartrazine
Lake Tartrazine
| E 102
F.D & C. No. Yellow 5 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics • Confectionery Coatings
Allocol™ Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
| E 110
F.D & C. No. Yellow 6 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics • Food
Allocol™ Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
| E 110
F.D & C. No. Yellow 6 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
Lake Sunset Yellow FCF
| E 110
F.D & C. No. Yellow 6 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Erythrosine
Lake Erythrosine
| E 127
F.D & C. No. Red 3 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Erythrosine
Lake Erythrosine
| E 127
F.D & C. No. Red 3 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Erythrosine
Lake Erythrosine
| E 127
F.D & C. No. Red 3 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Ponceau 4R
Lake Ponceau 4R
| E 124
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Ponceau 4R
Lake Ponceau 4R
| E 124
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Ponceau 4R
Lake Ponceau 4R
| E 124
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics
Allocol™ Lake Allura Red
Lake Allura Red
| E 129
F.D & C. No. Red 40 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Allura Red
Lake Allura Red
| E 129
F.D & C. No. Red 40 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Allura Red
Lake Allura Red
| E 129
F.D & C. No. Red 40 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Carmoisine
Lake Carmoisine
| E 122
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Carmoisine
Lake Carmoisine
| E 122
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Carmoisine
Lake Carmoisine
| E 122
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics
Allocol™ Lake Amaranth
Lake Amaranth
| E 123
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics • Food
Allocol™ Lake Amaranth
Lake Amaranth
| E 123
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics
Allocol™ Lake Amaranth
Lake Amaranth
| E 123
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Chocolate Brown HT
Lake Chocolate Brown HT
| E 155
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Chocolate Brown HT
Lake Chocolate Brown HT
| E 155
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Chocolate Brown HT
Lake Chocolate Brown HT
| E 155
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
| E 133
F.D & C. No. Blue 1 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics • Food
Allocol™ Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
| E 133
F.D & C. No. Blue 1 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics
Allocol™ Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
Lake Brilliant Blue FCF
| E 133
F.D & C. No. Blue 1 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Indigo Carmine
Lake Indigo Carmine
| E 132
F.D & C. No. Blue 2 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 12% to 18%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Indigo Carmine
Lake Indigo Carmine
| E 132
F.D & C. No. Blue 2 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 22% to 30%
Applications: Cosmetics • Food • Pharmaceuticals
Allocol™ Lake Indigo Carmine
Lake Indigo Carmine
| E 132
F.D & C. No. Blue 2 Aluminium Lake
Dye Content: 32% to 40%
Applications: Food • Pharmaceuticals • Cosmetics
Manufacturers rely on synthetic lake colours because they’re water-insoluble pigments made by binding a dye onto a substrate like calcium carbonate or aluminium oxide, which lets them colour fat- and oil-based products without bleeding or separating.
Chocolate, butter and many cosmetic bases share the same limitation. A standard water-soluble dye simply won’t hold in a fat-based system, and that’s the exact gap synthetic lake colours were built to close.
Alliance Organics produces these under its Allocol Lake range for food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic manufacturers who need colour that stays even through a long shelf life. Since the pigment disperses as fine particles rather than dissolving, it performs very differently from a regular dye once blended into fat or oil.
You’ll learn how lake colours are made, why particle dispersion drives colour quality, which dye concentrations are available, and where these pigments are used across food, pharma and cosmetics.
A lake colour begins as a water-soluble dye chemically bonded to an insoluble substrate, which converts it into a stable, particle-based pigment instead of a dissolving one. That shift in structure is what lets it work in products a regular dye would spoil.
Because the pigment doesn’t dissolve, it stays evenly suspended in fats, oils and dry powder blends instead of drifting or bleeding to the surface. Alliance Organics treats this as the category’s main strength, since lake colours resist fading and separation better than most colourants over extended shelf life.
Lakes give up solubility for particle stability, which is exactly what fat- and oil-based formulations need.
Dispersion, meaning how evenly pigment particles spread through a mix, is what determines the final colour value. A poorly dispersed lake looks streaky or dull even when the base dye is strong.
Alliance Organics runs its Lakes through specialised mills that control particle size tightly, which keeps colour strength consistent across dry powder mixes. A well-milled lake spreads colour uniformly through an entire batch, while a poorly milled one shows visible patches regardless of dye quality. Milling precision matters as much as the dye itself when it comes to usable colour.
Alliance Organics offers three standard concentrations, Low Dye, Mid Dye and High Dye, giving formulators direct control over colouring power per batch.
Concentration | Dye Content Range |
Low Dye (LD) | 12% to 18% |
Mid Dye (MD) | 22% to 30% |
High Dye (HD) | 32% to 40% |
The full Allocol Lake lineup, including Lake Tartrazine, Lake Allura Red, Lake Brilliant Blue FCF, Lake Erythrosine, Lake Quinoline Yellow, Lake Sunset Yellow FCF, Lake Ponceau 4R, Lake Carmoisine, Lake Amaranth, Lake Chocolate Brown HT and Lake Indigo Carmine, is available across all three bands.
Three dye bands let formulators set intensity without changing shade.
They’re applied anywhere colour has to withstand heat, light or pH shifts better than a dissolving dye can manage, which covers bakery, confectionery, pharma and cosmetics.
Common applications:
Lake colours also turn up in textile dyeing for fabrics, yarns and fibres, extending well past food alone. Every one of these uses comes down to the same requirement: colour that holds steady through processing.
Processing-stable colour, not solubility, is the shared demand behind every application.
Lake colours are insoluble pigments dispersed as particles, suited to fat- and oil-based products like chocolate. Water-soluble food colours dissolve completely and work better in beverages and liquid formulations.
Yes. They’re widely used in lipsticks, eye shadows and nail polishes, and manufacturers like Alliance Organics produce them under regulated dye content standards for consistent quality.
Chocolate and similar fat-based products have no water for a dye to dissolve into. Lake colours disperse as stable particles instead, giving even colour a standard dye simply can’t achieve.
It shows how much active colourant is present in the pigment blend, from 12 to 18% in Low Dye grades up to 32 to 40% in High Dye grades, letting formulators control intensity precisely.
They hold up better against heat, light exposure and pH changes than many alternatives, making them the preferred choice for products that need a long shelf life.
Yes. They’re routinely used to colour tablets, capsules and syrups, valued for visual consistency and stability across a product’s shelf life.
Synthetic lake colours solve a problem water-soluble dyes can’t fix: delivering stable, even colour in fat-based, oil-based and long-shelf-life products.
Key takeaways:
For technical data sheets or dye-concentration guidance, get in touch with Alliance Organics directly.
