D&C Red 7
A synthetic red pigment widely used in printing and food colouring
No single value: D&C Red 7 is a material, and its colour varies. The background shows its family, pink and magenta.
D&C Red 7 is a man-made red dye, appearing as a powder and showing a magenta shade when printed. It is a standard magenta for printing, and is also used in plastics, paints, textiles, and as a food colouring, especially for cheese rinds and lip balms.
- Appears as a red powder, magenta when printed
- Used as E180 to colour cheese rinds
- Standard magenta in colour printing
- Also found in lip balms and textiles
- Usually supplied as a calcium salt
What colour is D&C Red 7?
D&C Red 7 is a synthetic colourant that comes as a red powder. When used in printing, it gives a magenta tone, which is a purplish-red. Its main role is as a standard magenta in colour printing, but it also finds use in plastics, paints, textiles, and food products. Its solubility varies with different liquids, and it is most often supplied as a calcium salt.
Where does D&C Red 7 come from?
This dye is made in laboratories and does not come from natural sources. The name 'D&C Red 7' refers to its listing for use in drugs and cosmetics in the United States. It is also called Lithol Rubine BK in industrial and printing contexts.
How is D&C Red 7 made?
D&C Red 7 is produced by a chemical process that joins together specific molecules to create an azo dye. It is not found in nature but is synthesised for industrial use. The dye is usually supplied as a calcium salt, which affects its handling and application. It dissolves in some solvents but not in water or ethanol.
Where D&C Red 7 is used
This dye is a key ingredient in the printing industry, serving as a standard magenta for both three- and four-colour printing. It is also used to colour plastics, paints, and textiles. In the food industry, it is known as E180 and is used to colour cheese rinds. Some lip balms also contain this dye for its red hue.
Pink around the world
What the pink and magenta family means from country to country.
The president's office in Buenos Aires is the Casa Rosada, the Pink House. A popular story says its paint once had ox blood mixed in, though this is not proven.
Politics and protestSource: Casa RosadaThe third day of the New Year's Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground is Jane McGrath Day. The crowd wears pink to raise money for breast cancer nurses.
Protection and healingHopeSource: McGrath FoundationThe Rose Valley near Kazanlak grows pink damask roses for rose oil. The harvest in late May and June is marked by a festival and the crowning of a Rose Queen.
Nature and renewalFestival and celebrationJoySource: Rose Valley, BulgariaToulouse is called la Ville Rose, the pink city, for the soft pink brick of its old buildings.
Nature and renewalSource: ToulouseIn November 2003 protesters entered parliament carrying roses, and the president resigned without bloodshed. The change of power is called the Rose Revolution.
Politics and protestHopeSource: Rose RevolutionAt Holi, the spring festival of colours, friends and strangers smear each other with gulal, a coloured powder. Pink and red gulal are the best known shades.
Festival and celebrationJoySource: HoliShades and relatives of D&C Red 7
D&C Red 7 is one of several synthetic azo dyes used for similar purposes. It is closely related to other magenta and red dyes in printing and food colouring. Its appearance and properties may differ slightly depending on the salt form or the application method.
Questions people ask about D&C Red 7
What colour is D&C Red 7?
D&C Red 7 is a synthetic red dye that looks magenta when printed, and is supplied as a red powder.
Where does the name D&C Red 7 come from?
The name comes from its approval for use in drugs and cosmetics in the United States.
What is D&C Red 7 made from?
It is made synthetically in laboratories by combining specific chemicals to form an azo dye.
What is D&C Red 7 used for?
It is used in printing inks, plastics, paints, textiles, food colouring (as E180), and in some lip balms.
Is D&C Red 7 natural or synthetic?
D&C Red 7 is a synthetic dye, not found in nature.
Good reading and sources
- Lithol Rubine BK on WikipediaEncyclopedia
- More pictures on Wikimedia CommonsPictures
- Wikidata recordOpen data
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Lithol Rubine BK", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Rang rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. The swatch is an approximation: named colours are not fixed standards, and every screen shows them a little differently. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.
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