Acetic and fatty acid esters of glycerol

E number E472aINS 472a

Used as an emulsifier — Codex also lists it as sequestrant, stabilizer.

These are mono- and diglycerides with acetic acid attached, used to make aerated products such as whipped toppings and to coat foods. They belong to the E472 family, the most common emulsifiers in processed food after mono- and diglycerides themselves.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Acetic and fatty acid esters of glycerol by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
Jurisdiction	Status	Scope and limits	Citation
United StatesFood and Drug Administration	Not listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited.
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFA	Permitted, with conditions	20 food categories highest permitted level 5,000 mg/kg Show every food category 01.1.2 Other Fluid Milk (plain) — GMP 01.2.1.1 Fermented milks (plain), not heat-treated after fermentation — GMP 01.2.1.2 Fermented milks (plain), heat-treated after fermentation — GMP 01.2.2 Renneted milk (plain) — GMP 01.4.1 Pasteurized cream (plain) — GMP 01.4.2 Sterilized and UHT creams, whipping and whipped creams, and reduced fat creams (plain) — GMP 04.1.1.2 Surface-treated fresh fruit — GMP 06.4.1 Fresh pastas and noodles and like products — GMP 08.1.1 Fresh meat, poultry and game, whole pieces or cuts — GMP 08.1.2 Fresh meat, poultry and game, comminuted — GMP 09.2.1 Frozen fish, fish fillets, and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP 09.2.2 Frozen battered fish, fish fillets and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP 09.2.3 Frozen minced and creamed fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP 09.2.4.1 Cooked fish and fish products — GMP 09.2.4.3 Fried fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP 09.2.5 Smoked, dried, fermented, and/or salted fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP 11.4 Other sugars and syrups (e.g. xylose, maple syrup, sugar toppings) — GMP 12.1.2 Salt substitutes — GMP 13.2 Complementary foods for infants and young children — 5,000 mg/kg 14.1.5 Coffee, coffee substitutes, tea, herbal infusions, and other hot cereal and grain beverages, excluding cocoa — GMP	CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 472aand 20 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

What it is made from

Made by esterifying mono- and diglycerides with acetic acid. The underlying fats may be of plant or animal origin and the source is almost never declared, so a product containing them cannot be assumed vegetarian without asking the manufacturer.

Vegan status depends on the source

Vegetarian status depends on the source

May raise a halal question

May raise a kosher question

This is not an omission. What this additive is made from is not fixed — depending on the manufacturer it may be plant, animal or microbial in origin, nobody is required to say which, and the same product can change source between production runs. Ask the manufacturer if it matters to you; a label cannot answer it.

Acetic and fatty acid esters of glycerol

Where it is and isn’t permitted

What it is made from

Every name it appears under

E number

INS number

Other names

Hazard reference values

Evidence and how bodies read it

Sources for this page