The red color in certain carrot varieties is primarily attributed to which pigment? (MCAER 2015)

✔Explanation: While orange carrots get their color primarily from beta-carotene, red carrots owe their vibrant hue to lycopene. Lycopene is a carotenoid pigment that also gives tomatoes and watermelons their characteristic red color. It is a powerful antioxidant linked to various health benefits.

🔑Key Points:
-Different fruits and vegetables have different colours due to the presence of natural colour in them.
-A particular fruit/vegetable can have one or more than one natural colour in them.
-The natural colour of a fruit/vegetable changes with its growth.

• Carotene:
-Carrots derive their colour from pigment compounds called carotenoids. 
-Orange carrots are coloured by alpha- and beta-carotene
-The red carrots get their colour from lycopene, yellow from lutein, and purple from anthocyanin.
-These pigments also provide nutrition.
-Carrots are a particularly good source of beta carotene, fibre, vitamin K1, potassium, and antioxidants.

🛑Additional Information:

• Lycopene:
-It is a plant nutrient with antioxidant properties.
-It's the pigment that gives red and pink fruits, such as tomatoes, watermelons, and pink grapefruit, their characteristic colour.

• Cryptoxanthin:
-β-Cryptoxanthin is a natural carotenoid pigment.
-β-Cryptoxanthin is a type of natural xanthophyll carotenoid pigment and is hence used as a colouring agent.
-The primary sources for β-cryptoxanthin are oranges, tangerines, persimmons, papaya, red peppers, apples, and peaches.
-It structurally resembles β-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin with high bioavailability.