Chlorophylls are the colors the food industry lists as E140i. In our table they are no risk identified: they take no points off a product's score.
- The key finding, from EFSA: The available database for chlorophylls was inadequate for risk assessment and did not allow an ADI to be established; however, 'chlorophylls are natural dietary constituents, which are present at relatively high concentrations in a number of foods' and 'the exposure resulting from the use of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives is lower than the exposure to chlorophylls from the regular diet. Therefore, the Panel concluded that, at the reported use levels, chlorophylls (E 140(i)) are not of safety concern as regards their current use as food additives.' (10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4089 (EFSA Journal 2015;13(5):4089, Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives))
- No child flag. The class, and the points it costs, are the same for a child of any age.
- Where you meet it. None of the 10,000 packaged foods scanned most on Open Food Facts list them. Nine in ten of those foods are sold in Europe (counted 26 Sep 2026).
- 2 citations from EFSA, each one below.
What Chlorophylls do to a score
A packaged food's additive subscore starts at 100 and loses points for each additive on the label; that subscore is a third of the final score. Chlorophylls take no points off a product's score. Scan the pack in Sito and the score you get is the one for your own child's age, with this additive named in the reasons. How we score has the whole method.
See what is in your own cupboard
Scan a packaged food and Sito names the additives in it, then scores the product out of 100 for your child's age.
What the sources found
Every classification in our table comes from the citations below, and nothing else. Each finding is our one-line summary of what the source concluded, with the source and reference beside it.
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EFSA
10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4089 (EFSA Journal 2015;13(5):4089 — Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives)
The available database for chlorophylls was inadequate for risk assessment and did not allow an ADI to be established; however, 'chlorophylls are natural dietary constituents, which are present at relatively high concentrations in a number of foods' and 'the exposure resulting from the use of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives is lower than the exposure to chlorophylls from the regular diet. Therefore, the Panel concluded that, at the reported use levels, chlorophylls (E 140(i)) are not of safety concern as regards their current use as food additives.' -
EFSA
European Commission, 'Call for scientific and technical data on the permitted food additives E 140(i) chlorophylls, E 140(ii) chlorophyllins, E 141(i) copper complexes of chlorophylls and E 141(ii) copper complexes of chlorophyllins', published 7 April 2017 (food.ec.europa.eu)
Official EU restatement of the same conclusion, plus the outstanding specification recommendations: the definition and identity of E 140(i) should be updated to describe components other than chlorophylls and possible residual solvents, and the maximum limits for arsenic, lead, mercury and cadmium impurities should be revised.
Why this class
Clean current EFSA and FDA status. These rows exist so that an unfamiliar additive is never treated as a bad one: a missing row costs a product nothing, and a clean row says so with citations.
Our confidence in this row's classification is high. Medium or low does not mean the evidence is weak; it means something about the row is still being pinned down, usually a regulatory status confirmed from one source rather than two.
Questions parents ask
Are Chlorophylls (E140i) safe for kids?
No risk identified. No regulator finding we score, so a product keeps its full additive subscore in Sito. The current status is clean: The available database for chlorophylls was inadequate for risk assessment and did not allow an ADI to be established; however, 'chlorophylls are natural dietary constituents, which are present at relatively high concentrations in a number of foods' and 'the exposure resulting from the use of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives is lower than the exposure to chlorophylls from the regular diet. Therefore, the Panel concluded that, at the reported use levels, chlorophylls (E 140(i)) are not of safety concern as regards their current use as food additives.' (EFSA, 10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4089 (EFSA Journal 2015;13(5):4089, Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of chlorophylls (E 140(i)) as food additives)).
What is E140i?
E140i is the E number for Chlorophylls, which our table lists as a color. It is one of the forms of E140 (Chlorophylls and chlorophyllins) in our table, with E140ii. Open Food Facts tags it en:e140i.
Next to it on the label
The E numbers either side of E140i in our table, then the closest colors by number.
- Blue 1 (E133), low risk, flagged for young children
- Chlorophylls and chlorophyllins (E140), no risk identified
- Chlorophyllins (E140ii), moderate risk
- Copper complexes of chlorophylls and chlorophyllins (E141), moderate risk
- Green S (E142), no risk identified
- Green 3 (E143), low risk, flagged for young children