What it does
An additive may provide color, preserve a product, maintain texture or sweeten it. Its function helps explain the formulation.
Additive scanner
Find out what that additive is doing there.
Lychee helps identify food additives and explain their role and concern context alongside the product’s processing and nutrition. Scan the barcode or a readable ingredient list.
Free download · Optional Premium · iOS & Android
More than a chemical name
Function, context and the rest of the label.
Why it is flagged
A concern category or regulatory reference deserves explanation. It does not establish individual risk at an unknown concentration.
How it affects the score
Lychee considers recognized additives alongside processing, ingredient quality and nutrition, rather than counting additives alone.
Regulatory context
Approval depends on the ingredient and use.
US and EU additive rules can differ. Approval, restrictions and conditions of use should be checked against current official sources for the exact ingredient, product category and jurisdiction. A blanket “banned in Europe” claim can erase these details.
Make a useful comparison
Read the whole formulation.
Use food scanning to compare similar products, inspect the reasons behind each score and review nutrition. Label scanning can help when the database list is missing or old.
Common questions
Before you scan.
How does Lychee score food?
Lychee uses a 1–100 food score that prioritizes processing. Additives, ingredient quality, sugar, salt, saturated fat, fiber and protein also matter. Available NOVA data and ingredient-based estimates inform processing; Lychee applies its own scoring rules. Missing data can reduce confidence or prevent a score.
What if my product is missing from the database?
Try reading the ingredient label with Lychee. You can also submit or correct product data through its contribution flow. OCR and contributed records need checking; a missing ingredient list should be treated as incomplete data.
Keep exploring
More detail, when you need it.
Get Lychee
Start with your next label.
Food and beauty ingredient context in your pocket.