Dehydroacetic acid
16807-48-0 · 520-45-6 · 2-Acetyl-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-4-hexenoic acid, .delta.-lactone · 2H-Pyran-2, 3-acetyl-6-methyl- · 2H-Pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, 3-acetyl-6-methyl- · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,3-dihydropyran-2,4-dione · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,4(3H)-pyrandione · 3-acetyl-6-methyl-2,4-dioxo-3H-pyran · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,4-pyrandione · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, enol form · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, ion(1-) · 3-acetyl-6-methyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran-2,4-dione · 3-acetyl-6-methyl-3H-pyran-2,4-dione · 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-pyran-2,4-dione · 3-Acetyl-6-Methyldihydropyrandione-2,4(3H) · 3-acetyl-6-methylpyran-2,4-dione · 3-Acetyl-6-methylpyrandione-2,4 · 4-Hexenoic acid, .delta.-lactone · 4-Hexenoic acid, 2-acetyl-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-, .delta.-lactone · Acetic acid, dehydro- · Biocide 470F · CAS-520-45-6 · DEHYDROACETIC ACID · Dehydroacetic acid (Standard) · Dehydroacetic acid 1000 microg/mL in Ethyl acetate · Dehydroacetic acid, >=98.0% (T) · Dehydroacetic acid, Pharmaceutical Secondary Standard; Certified Reference Material · Dehydroacetic acid, United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Reference Standard · Epitope ID:613424 · InChI=1/C8H8O4/c1-4-3-6(10)7(5(2)9)8(11)12-4/h3,7H,1-2H3 · Methylacetopyronone · PGRHXDWITVMQBC-UHFFFAOYSA- · WLN: T6OV DV CHJ CV1 F1 · Dehydroacetic acidCAS 520-45-6
Listed as a preservative by the US.
Listed as preservatives (US)
- United States: Antimicrobial agent — FDA, Substances Added to Food: DEHYDROACETIC ACID
Dehydroacetic acid and its sodium salt are preservatives with one narrow use: on cut or peeled squash.
Where it is and isn’t permitted
| Jurisdiction | Status | Scope and limits | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia and New Zealand | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Canada | No listing matchedHealth Canada’s lists name additives without E or INS numbers, so this site matches them by exact name. A substance listed there under a name this site does not recognise has no row here. | ||
| European Union | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Great Britain | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Japan | No listing matchedThis site imports only Japan’s list of designated additives (Appended Table 1 to the Regulations for Enforcement of the Food Sanitation Act), matched by English name. Existing additives, natural flavouring agents and ordinary foods used as additives are permitted outside that list and are not imported, so an empty row does not show that Japan does not permit the substance. | ||
| South Korea | Permitted, with conditions | Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 1. …Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 1. 일반식품첨가물 (general food additives), 데히드로초산나트륨 (“Sodium Dehydroacetate”, the English the Code prints beside it). Main use (주용도) of 데히드로초산나트륨: 보존료. Standard for use (사용기준) of 데히드로초산나트륨: (1) [may be used only in the foods listed; sets a limit on the amount used] “데히드로초산나트륨은 아래의 식품에 한하여 사용하여야 한다. 데히드로초산나트륨의 사용량은 데히드로초산으로서 1. 치즈류, 버터류, 마가린 : 0.5g/kg 이하” The Korean is the standard as published. There is no official English translation of the current Code (the English version on MFDS’s website is the 2020 edition and has no legal effect); the English in square brackets is this site’s description of what each sentence does, not a translation of the foods or the levels. Compositional specifications (Part IV) are not imported, nor are the general standards in Part II, which apply to every additive. | Standards and Specifications for Food Additives (식품첨가물의 기준 및 규격), MFDS Notification, Part III (Standards for use, by item)retrieved 2026-10-18 |
| United States | Permitted, with conditions | 21 CFR 172.130retrieved 2026-10-17 | |
| Codex Alimentarius | Not listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited. |
How much is permitted
A listing usually limits the quantity as well as the food. Only one of the forms that takes is a figure: quantum satis and good manufacturing practice permit the amount the technological effect requires and no more, which is a limit rather than the absence of one. Figures below are the range across every food category this page is listed in, and categories differ between regulators — see how much is permitted.
| South Korea | — | 1 no quantity stated |
|---|---|---|
| United States | — | 1 no quantity stated |
No regulator sets a figure for Dehydroacetic acid. That is not an absence of control: where the listing says quantum satis or good manufacturing practice, the quantity is limited to what the effect requires.
What it is made from
Produced by chemical synthesis from acetic acid derivatives.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 520-45-6
- InChIKey
- PGRHXDWITVMQBC-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- PubChem
- CID 122903
Every name it appears under
35 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
CAS registry number
- 16807-48-0
- 520-45-6
As it appears in regulation
- Dehydroacetic acid
Other names
- 2-Acetyl-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-4-hexenoic acid, .delta.-lactone
- 2H-Pyran-2, 3-acetyl-6-methyl-
- 2H-Pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, 3-acetyl-6-methyl-
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,3-dihydropyran-2,4-dione
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,4(3H)-pyrandione
- 3-acetyl-6-methyl-2,4-dioxo-3H-pyran
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2,4-pyrandione
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, enol form
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dione, ion(1-)
- 3-acetyl-6-methyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran-2,4-dione
- 3-acetyl-6-methyl-3H-pyran-2,4-dione
- 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-pyran-2,4-dione
- 3-Acetyl-6-Methyldihydropyrandione-2,4(3H)
- 3-acetyl-6-methylpyran-2,4-dione
- 3-Acetyl-6-methylpyrandione-2,4
- 4-Hexenoic acid, .delta.-lactone
- 4-Hexenoic acid, 2-acetyl-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-, .delta.-lactone
- Acetic acid, dehydro-
- Biocide 470F
- CAS-520-45-6
- DEHYDROACETIC ACID
- Dehydroacetic acid (Standard)
- Dehydroacetic acid 1000 microg/mL in Ethyl acetate
- Dehydroacetic acid, >=98.0% (T)
- Dehydroacetic acid, Pharmaceutical Secondary Standard; Certified Reference Material
- Dehydroacetic acid, United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Reference Standard
- Epitope ID:613424
- InChI=1/C8H8O4/c1-4-3-6(10)7(5(2)9)8(11)12-4/h3,7H,1-2H3
- Methylacetopyronone
- PGRHXDWITVMQBC-UHFFFAOYSA-
- WLN: T6OV DV CHJ CV1 F1
Hazard reference values
No reference value for this substance in the sources we hold.
Evidence and how bodies read it
Studies, and the differing conclusions regulators drew from them, are curated rather than machine-read, and none has been written for this substance yet.
Common questions
Assembled from what is above, in the words the questions are usually asked in. Each answer is the same statement the relevant section makes, with the same citations behind it.
- What is Dehydroacetic acid?
- Dehydroacetic acid and its sodium salt are preservatives with one narrow use: on cut or peeled squash.
- What is Dehydroacetic acid used for in food?
- It is listed as a preservative — the role the US assigns it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
- Is Dehydroacetic acid banned in Europe?
- No. Dehydroacetic acid does not appear on the EU's list of authorised food additives, which is not the same as being banned: the EU permits an additive only where it has authorised it, and usually the reason for an absence is that no one applied. The EU has made no finding against this substance. It does mean it may not be used as a food additive in the EU today.
- Where is Dehydroacetic acid permitted?
- Of the seven regulators this site reads, South Korea and the US permit it. Each permission is for named foods at named levels, not a blanket one; the table on this page gives them with citations.
- Is Dehydroacetic acid vegan?
- Yes. Dehydroacetic acid is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.
Sources for this page
- kr retrieved 2026-10-18
- ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17
Full licence terms and publisher details on Sources. How this page is built and updated: Method.
Machine-readable: a JSON record of this additive is given on request —how to ask for access.
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