Caramel color tastes different from the caramel we eat as candy, mainly because it’s not actually a flavor! It tends to be more bitter than caramel with a slightly burnt aroma. But that’s if you were to eat it straight. When added to foods or beverages for color, you often won’t taste it, because it is used at low dosage rates and often to provide consistency from batch to batch.
The short answer is yes! There have been a multitude of studies conducted over the years confirming the safety of caramel color. Visit our safety page for in-depth information and to check out more resources from regulatory bodies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). You can also check out the research done here.
