This text presents our current progress in the understanding of the chemistry and physiology of various categories of food colorants. It includes reviews of the chemistry and physiology of food colorants, carotenoids, anthocyanins and the oxidative transformation of tea catechins. There are also examinations of the aspects of non-enzymatic browning including the structures, color and formation of Maillard reaction products, the polymerization in browning of chicken skin, the Maillard reaction in beer and the influence of non-enzymatically formed melanoidins on human gut bacteria.