Objective This study aims to systematically investigate the actual usage of turmeric and curcumin as food additives in prepackaged foods in China and assess the dietary exposure levels of the Chinese population to these compounds.Methods Based on the maximum usage limits of curcumin specified in the National Food Safety Standard for the Use of Food Additives （GB 2760-2024）， this study collected data on the application of turmeric and curcumin in enterprises via questionnaire surveys， determined curcumin contents in randomly inspected food samples， and integrated food consumption data to successively conduct three types of exposure assessments： theoretical exposure assessment， exposure assessment based on the maximum usage level from enterprise surveys， and actual exposure assessment. The dietary exposure level was compared with the curcumin acceptable daily intake （ADI） of 0-3 mg/（kg·BW） to characterize potential health risks.Results The theoretical exposure assessment， the exposure assessment based on the maximum use levels obtained from enterprise surveys， and the actual exposure assessment showed that the mean daily dietary exposure to curcumin in the general population was 1.31， 12.66， and 0.18 mg/d， respectively. All estimated exposure levels were below the acceptable daily intake， suggesting a low health risk. However， the assessments did not cover all food categories permitted by the standard. Major uncertainties included incomplete coverage of food types in consumption surveys and the lack of specified curcumin content in turmeric standards.Conclusion The health risk associated with dietary intake of turmeric and curcumin via food additives is low for the general Chinese population. Further expansion of usage surveys and market monitoring is recommended， as well as integrating the application scopes of turmeric and curcumin and standardizing their usage levels as curcumin equivalents， to support more reliable exposure assessments and inform food additive standard optimization and risk control.