Beta Carotene
Beta Carotene is a fat-soluble carotenoid pigment that delivers both vivid yellow-to-deep-orange colour and provitamin A activity to food, beverage, supplement, and cosmetic formulations.
The molecule is a tetraterpene with the formula C₄₀H₅₆ and sits at the head of the carotenoid family. It is also the dominant dietary precursor that the human body converts to retinol (vitamin A).
We source bulk Beta Carotene from top China manufacturers for our partners, working with several of them. The manufacturers are mostly in Hubei, Hebei and Zhejiang. For this ingredient the minimum order is 500 kg and a 20-foot container takes 10 MT, and a smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
or call +86-21-6858 0751
- Minimum order
- 500 kg
- Qty in 20' FCL
- 10 MT
- Packaging
- 20 kg fibre drum, light-shielded
- ISO 9001
- HACCP
- Halal
- Kosher
Specifications
Grades / Types Available: Food Grade, Feed Grade
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Orange to dark red powder or beadlets |
| Beta-Carotene Content | 1-30% (grade-dependent) |
| Dispersibility | CWS / OS / Beadlet (grade-dependent) |
| Moisture | ≤ 6.0% |
| Heavy Metals (as Pb) | ≤ 2 mg/kg |
| Total Plate Count | ≤ 1,000 cfu/g |
| Purity/Assay (Food Grade) | ≥ 10% |
| Moisture/Loss on Drying | ≤ 5% |
| pH | 6.0 - 7.0 |
| Particle Size/Mesh | 100% pass 80 mesh |
| Lead | ≤ 1 ppm |
| Arsenic | ≤ 0.5 ppm |
| Yeast & Mold | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
Common Markets Grades
Beta Carotene is graded by active pigment content.
The mainstream beadlet grades for beverage and dairy applications are 1 percent and 5 percent CWS (cold-water-dispersible) for low-dose colour use. 10 percent and 20 percent CWS beadlets cover confectionery, supplements, and stronger orange tones.
A 30 percent suspension in refined vegetable oil is the standard format for hard-pressed cheese, butter, and margarine, where lipid-soluble dispersion is preferred.
Crystalline beta-carotene at 96 to 98 percent assay is produced for analytical reference, dietary-supplement encapsulation, and pharmaceutical formulation under USP and Ph. Eur. monographs.
Most beadlet grades exist in both synthetic-source and fermentation-source variants. The fermentation-source variants qualify for natural-colour labelling in the European Union under E160a(iii) or E160a(iv), depending on the production organism.
Applications
- Soft drinks, fruit juices, and sports beverages for yellow-to-orange tinting with stability through pasteurisation and shelf life
- Cultured and processed dairy: butter, margarine, cheddar-type cheeses, and processed-cheese slices
- Yogurt, ice cream, and frozen desserts where a soft orange tone reinforces the flavour cue
- Confectionery: hard candies, gummies, jellies, and orange-flavoured panned coatings
- Bakery: cake mixes, custard fillings, frostings, and tinted-crumb breads
- Infant formula and clinical-nutrition products as a provitamin A source
- Dietary supplements: standalone softgels, multivitamins, and provitamin A blends
- Pharmaceutical preparations including syrups, chewable tablets, and topical creams
- Animal feed for laying hens (egg-yolk pigmentation) and aquaculture (salmonid flesh colour)
- Cosmetics: lipsticks, foundations, self-tanning lotions, and natural-positioning skincare
- Pet food and treats for colour stability and provitamin A fortification
Brands Using Beta Carotene
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Beta Carotene on the ingredient label.
- Land O'LakesMargarine Tub ↗Ingredients include: Soybean Oil, Palm Oil, Water, Buttermilk... Vitamin A Palmitate, beta-Carotene.Label verified 2026-05-24
- Land O'LakesMargarine Sticks ↗Ingredients include Vegetable Oil Blend... Vitamin A Palmitate, beta-Carotene (colour).Label verified 2026-05-24
- Tropicana (PepsiCo)Pure Premium Orange Juice Low Acid ↗Ingredients: 100% orange juice, acid reduced orange juice, calcium citrate, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), and beta-carotene.Label verified 2026-05-24
- V8 (Campbell's)Original 100% Vegetable Juice ↗V8 Original 100% Vegetable Juice lists beta carotene among ingredients; provides Vitamin A.Label verified 2026-05-24
- V8 (Campbell's)Essential Antioxidants 100% Vegetable Juice ↗V8 Essential Antioxidants 100% Vegetable Juice includes beta carotene per Campbell's ingredient list.Label verified 2026-05-24
- Yoplait (General Mills)Protein Strawberry Banana Yogurt (single serve) ↗Product ingredient text lists beta carotene as colour in the fruit blend.Label verified 2026-05-24
Brand names, product names and logos are the property of their owners. They appear here as published evidence that the ingredient is used, taken from the brand's own label or website. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and it does not mean the brand buys from us or from any manufacturer listed on this site.
China Manufacturers of Beta Carotene
Top Beta Carotene manufacturers in China.
CABIO Biotech (Wuhan) Co., Ltd.9 ingredients in the directory
Chenguang Biotech Group Co., Ltd.12 ingredients in the directory
Guangdong Tiansheng Food Technology Co., Ltd.8 ingredients in the directory- Guangzhou Leader Bio-Technology Co., Ltd.7 ingredients in the directory
Hebei Granray Bioproducts Co., Ltd.4 ingredients in the directory- Hebei Yuhua Biotech Co., Ltd.4 ingredients in the directory
Hubei Xinhe Biological Technology Co., Ltd.7 ingredients in the directory
Jiangxi Tianxin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.16 ingredients in the directory
Qingdao Borong Biotechnology Co., Ltd.10 ingredients in the directory
Suizhou Shilida Biotechnology Co., Ltd.4 ingredients in the directory
VDK NaturaSyn Co., Ltd.5 ingredients in the directory
WuHan Stars Modern Bio-engineering Co., Ltd.3 ingredients in the directory
Xi'an Healthful Biotechnology Co., Ltd.5 ingredients in the directory
Zhejiang NHU Company Ltd.25 ingredients in the directory
Zhejiang Tianhecheng Bio-technology Shares Co., Ltd.17 ingredients in the directory
Zhejiang Wedin Biological Technology Co., Ltd.18 ingredients in the directory
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
How We Help Source Beta Carotene
Direct Factory Sourcing
We run the whole process: selecting the manufacturer from the top Chinese food ingredient producers, negotiating the price, verifying quality, and coordinating the logistics. You deal with us instead of with several factories at once.
Original Packaging and Documents from the Manufacturer
The manufacturer sends your Beta Carotene out of its own factory in the original packing, through to your destination port. The COA, COO, MSDS, TDS and any certifications reach you from the manufacturer as well.
Free Samples and Lead Time
We send 100 to 500 g free for your own laboratory to test and you cover only the courier, usually within 2 to 3 working days. ETD is usually within 7 to 15 days once the order is confirmed, and we check that date against the factory's own manufacturing schedule before we give it to you.
Combined Shipment
We can load Beta Carotene together with other ingredients such as Caramel Colour, Lycopene and Paprika Oleoresin into one 20' FCL. If your quantity is small, we can also ship LCL.
Regulatory Status
Beta Carotene is approved as a food colour in essentially every regulated market.
In the European Union it carries the E number E160a, subdivided into E160a(i) synthetic, E160a(ii) plant carotenes, E160a(iii) Blakeslea trispora carotenes, and E160a(iv) Dunaliella algal carotenes.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration permits it as a colour additive exempt from certification under 21 CFR 73.95 (general food use), 21 CFR 73.30 (butter and margarine), and 21 CFR 73.300 (pharmaceuticals). The substance also holds GRAS status when used as a nutrient.
JECFA has evaluated both synthetic and fermentation-derived beta-carotene and assigned them group acceptable status as colours and provitamin A sources.
Pharmacopoeial monographs appear in the United States Pharmacopeia (USP), the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.), and the Japanese Pharmacopoeia (JP). Halal and Kosher certifications are routinely available when the beadlet matrix is built without animal-derived gelatin.
Manufacturing Process
Three industrial routes account for nearly all global beta-carotene supply.
The dominant volume route is chemical synthesis, originally commercialized by Hoffmann-La Roche in 1954 from β-ionone via a C19 + C19 Wittig coupling. Modern variants still follow this skeleton, with BASF and DSM-Firmenich operating the largest plants.
The fermentation route uses the heterothallic fungus Blakeslea trispora. Mating of the (+) and (−) strains under controlled aerobic conditions triggers a sharp upregulation of beta-carotene biosynthesis. The resulting biomass is harvested, oil-extracted, and crystallised to yield natural-identical material qualifying for E160a(iii).
The third route is direct extraction from the halophilic green alga Dunaliella salina, cultivated in shallow open ponds in Western Australia, Israel, and southern China. High salinity and intense sunlight push the algae to accumulate up to 14 percent dry-weight carotenoids. Material from Dunaliella carries a distinctive isomer profile (higher 9-cis content) and is sold under E160a(iv).
