Daucus carota L. extract is attracting interest as a natural colorant alternative. However,
the presence of anthocyanins (ACNs), which are sensitive to pH changes, limits its application. To
tackle this issue, water-in-oil-in-water (W1/O/W2) double emulsions are emerging as innovative
solutions. Nevertheless, the problem of reaching robust colorant systems for industrial use still
needs to be overcome. One important target is to reach a high coloring power, minimizing its impact
on the final product. In this context, the effect of colorant concentration and the volume of the
primary emulsion, two routes to increase the colorant power, on color attributes and stability, an
important feature to reach a marketable product, was studied. The optimal experimental design was
conducted to two optimal solutions, whether through heightened colorant concentration or primary
emulsion volume: a 41/59 (W1/O)/W2 ratio with 11 wt.% colorant, and a 48/52 (W1/O)/W2 ratio
with 6 wt.% colorant, respectively. A subsequent assessment of color and physical emulsion stability
over 30 days pointed out the solution with the lower colorant concentration (6 wt.%) as the one with
better performance (L*: 44.11 ± 0.03, a*: 25.79 ± 0.01, D4;3: 9.62 ± 0.1 μm, and CI: 14.55 ± 0.99%), also
minimizing the permeability of the colorant to the outer aqueous phase. Overall, these optimized
emulsions offer versatile coloring solutions suitable for various industrial applications, such as food
matrices and functional cosmetics.
