Chapter 11: The supporting cast · Part 3: Colours
Acid Blue 80
No badge
The worst fact: Canada's 2008 assessment found it "persistent in water". Between 10,001 and 100,000 kg came into Canada in 2006, mainly in cleaning products.
Why brands use it: a deep blue for cleaning products; one disinfectant used it at 0.005%.
Take care if: no specific group.
Comes from: an anthraquinone dye; the route isn't published in the sources we trust.
Myth check: no common myth we could source.
Contaminants: nil.
Fair to say: Canada found it doesn't meet its criterion for building up in living things, isn't "highly hazardous to aquatic organisms", and doesn't meet its legal definition of toxic. The EU allows it in rinse-off cosmetics only.
Correct as of November 2026. What the badges mean
Sources
- Environment Canada / Health Canada. Screening assessment: Acid Blue 80 (2008).
The full source list is at the end of Chapter 11.