Ferric ammonium citrate

INS 381CAS 1185-57-5

Listed as an anticaking agent by Codex and the US.

Listed as anticaking agents (US, Codex) · nutrient supplements (US)
Chemical structure of Ferric ammonium citrate, from PubChem compound 118984355
Structure from PubChem CID 118984355 (National Library of Medicine, public domain). A depiction of one compound: where a listing covers a family, or a substance has no single structure, this page shows none.

Ferric ammonium citrate is an iron fortificant and an anticaking agent for salt.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Ferric ammonium citrate by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
Australia and New ZealandFood Standards Australia New ZealandPermitted, with conditions

55 food categories

no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice)

Show every food category
  • 0 Preparations of food additives — GMP
  • 1.1.1 Liquid milk (including buttermilk) — GMPOnly UHT goats milk.
  • 1.1.2 Liquid milk products and flavoured liquid milk — GMP
  • 1.2.2 Fermented milk products and rennetted milk products — GMP
  • 1.3 Condensed milk and evaporated milk — GMP
  • 1.4.1 Cream, reduced cream and light cream — GMPOnly UHT creams and creams receiving equivalent or greater heat treatments.
  • 1.4.2 Cream products (flavoured, whipped, thickened, sour cream etc) — GMP
  • 1.5 Dried milk, milk powder, cream powder — GMP
  • 1.6 Cheese and cheese products — GMP
  • 10.2 Liquid egg products — GMP
  • 10.3 Frozen egg products — GMP
  • 10.4 Dried or heat coagulated egg products — GMP
  • 11.1.1 Rainbow sugar — GMP
  • 11.3.1 Dried honey — GMP
  • 11.4 Tabletop sweeteners — GMP
  • 12.1.1 Salt — GMP
  • 12.1.2 Reduced sodium salt mixture — GMP
  • 12.1.3 Salt substitute — GMP
  • 12.5 Yeast and yeast products — GMP
  • 12.6 Vegetable protein products — GMP
  • 13.3 Formulated meal replacements and formulated supplementary foods — GMP
  • 13.4 Formulated supplementary sports foods — GMP
  • 13.5 Food for special medical purposes — GMP
  • 14.1.1.2 Carbonated, mineralised and soda waters — GMP
  • 14.1.2.1 Fruit and vegetable juices — GMPFor juice separated by other than mechanical means only.
  • 14.1.2.2 Fruit and vegetable juice products — GMP
  • 14.1.3 Water based flavoured drinks — GMP
  • 14.1.4 Formulated Beverages — GMP
  • 14.1.5 Coffee, coffee substitutes, tea, herbal infusions and similar products — GMP
  • 14.2.3 Wine based drinks and reduced alcohol wines — GMP
  • 14.2.4.1 Fruit wine products and vegetable wine products — GMP
  • 14.2.5 Spirits and liqueurs — GMP
  • 14.3 Alcoholic beverages not included in item 14.2 — GMP
  • 2.1 Edible oils essentially free of water — GMP
  • 2.2.1.2 Butter products — GMP
  • 2.2.1.3 Margarine and similar products — GMP
  • 2.2.2 Oil emulsions (<80% oil) — GMP
  • 20 Foods not included in items 0 to 14 — GMP
  • 3 Ice cream and edible ices — GMP
  • 4.1.3 Fruits and vegetables that are peeled, cut, or both peeled and cut — GMP
  • 4.3 Processed fruits and vegetables — GMP
  • 5.1 Chocolate and cocoa products — GMP
  • 5.2 Sugar confectionery — GMP
  • 5.4 Icings and frostings — GMP
  • 6.3 Processed cereal and meal products — GMP
  • 6.4 Flour products (including noodles and pasta) — GMP
  • 7 Breads and bakery products — GMP
  • 8.2 Processed meat, poultry and game products in whole cuts or pieces — GMP
  • 8.3 Processed comminuted meat, poultry and game products, other than products listed in item 8.3.2 — GMP
  • 8.3.2 Sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat — GMP
  • 8.4 Edible casings — GMP
  • 8.5 Animal protein products — GMP
  • 9.2 Processed fish and fish products — GMP
  • 9.3 Semi preserved fish and fish products — GMP
  • 9.4 Fully preserved fish including canned fish products — GMP
Food Standards Code, Schedule 15, S15—5and 54 further provisionsretrieved 2026-10-17
CanadaHealth CanadaNo 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 UnionEuropean Commission / EFSANo 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 BritainFood Standards Agency / Food Standards ScotlandNo 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.
JapanConsumer Affairs AgencyPermitted, with conditions
Designated additive: Appended Table 1, item 120, クエン酸鉄アンモニウム (“Ferric Ammonium Citrate” in the unofficial English translation). …

Designated additive: Appended Table 1, item 120, クエン酸鉄アンモニウム (“Ferric Ammonium Citrate” in the unofficial English translation). Standards for use — Specifications and Standards for Foods, Food Additives, etc. (MHW Notification No. 370 of 1959), Part II (Food Additives), F (Standards for use): The Notification sets no standard for use (使用基準) for this additive, so it is not restricted there to particular foods or amounts. Compositional specifications for this additive, in the same Notification, are not imported and are not shown here; nor are the general rules in F 添加物一般, which apply to every additive.

Regulations for Enforcement of the Food Sanitation Act (MHW Ordinance No. 23 of 1948), Appended Table 1retrieved 2026-10-18
South KoreaMinistry of Food and Drug SafetyPermitted, with conditions
Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 3. …

Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 3. 영양강화제 (nutrient fortifiers), 구연산철암모늄; nutrient: 철(Fe). Standard for use (사용기준) of 구연산철암모늄: (1) [to be used under the general standard for use in II. 2. 1), the minimum amount that achieves the technical effect, with no limit set for this additive in particular] “II. 2. 1)의 규정에 따라 사용하여야 한다.” 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 StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted, with conditions21 CFR 172.430and 1 further provisionretrieved 2026-10-17
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFAPermitted, with conditions

1 food category

highest permitted level 10 mg/kg

Note 23 As iron.

CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 381, food category 14.1.4.3retrieved 2026-09-07

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.

Australia and New Zealand—55 GMP
Japan—1 no quantity stated
South Korea—1 no quantity stated
United States—2 no quantity stated
Codex Alimentarius10 mg/kg1 numeric limit

What it is made from

Made by dissolving ferric hydroxide in citric acid and neutralising with ammonia.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.

CAS registry number
1185-57-5
InChIKey
FRHBOQMZUOWXQL-UHFFFAOYSA-N
PubChem
CID 118984355

How JECFA defines it

The international specification for identity and purity, prepared by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and published by FAO. It is a different document from any above, written by a different body and revised on its own cycle; it is advisory, and a country adopts it or does not.

INS 381 Ferric Ammonium Citrate

A complex salt of undetermined structure, composed of iron, ammonia and citric acid; there are two types of salts - brown and green - containing different amounts of iron

Synonyms: Iron ammonium citrate, ammonium ferric citrate, ammonium iron citrate, ammonium iron (III) citrate, INS No. 381 Ammonium ferric citrate; Ammonium iron (III) citrate; Ammonium iron citrate; Iron ammonium citrate

Assay, identification and purity criteria

Description and assay

Specification history
Prepared at the 28th JECFA (1984), published in FNP 31/2 (1984) and in FNP 52 (1992). Metals and arsenic specifications revised at the 63rd JECFA (2004). A PMTDI of 0.8 mg/kg bw for iron was established at the 29th JECFA (1985).
Chemical names
Ferric ammonium citrate, ammonium iron (III) citrate
Assay
Not less than 16.5% and not more than 22.5% of iron (Fe) for the brown salt, and not less than 14.5% and not more than 16.0% of iron (Fe) for the green salt.
DESCRIPTION
Brown salt: thin, transparent brown, reddish brown, or garnet red scales or granules, or a brownish yellow powder; odourless or has a slight ammoniacal odour Green salt: thin, transparent green scales, granules, powder, or transparent green crystals; odourless
FUNCTIONAL USES
Nutrient, dietary supplement (brown salt) Nutrient, dietary supplement, anticaking agent for sodium chloride(green salt)
METHOD OF ASSAY
Transfer about 1 g of the sample, accurately weighed, into a 250 ml glass-stoppered Erlenmeyer flask, and dissolve in 25 ml of water and 5 ml of hydrochloric acid. Add 4 g of potassium iodide, stopper, and allow to stand protected from light for 15 min. Add 100 ml of water, and titrate the liberated iodine with 0.1 N sodium thiosulfate, using starch TS as the indicator. Perform a blank determination and make any necessary correction. Each ml of 0.1 N sodium thiosulfate is equivalent to 5.585 mg of iron (Fe).

Identification

Solubility (Vol. 4)
Very soluble in water; insoluble in ethanol
Test for iron and ferric salts Ignite 0.5 g of the sample gently, and dissolve the residue in 5 ml of
dilute hydrochloric acid TS. The solution gives positive tests for iron and for ferric salts .
Test for citrate
To 5 ml of a 1-in-10 solution of the sample add 0.3 ml of potassium permanganate TS and 4 ml of mercuric sulfated TS and then heat the mixture to boiling. A white precipitated forms.
Test for ferric and ammonium salt
Dissolve 0.5 g of the sample in 5 ml of water, and add 5 ml of sodium hydroxide TS. A reddish brown precipitate forms and ammonia is evolved when the mixture is heated.

Purity criteria

Ferric citrate
Add potassium ferrocyanide TS to a 1 in 100 solution of the sample. No blue precipitation forms.
Oxalate
Transfer 1 g of the sample into a 125-ml-separator, dissolve in 10 ml of water, add 2 ml of hydrochloric acid, and extract successively with 50-ml portion and one 20-ml portion of ether. Transfer the combined ether extracts to a 150-ml beaker, add 10 ml of water, and remove the ether by evaporation on a steam bath. Add 1 drop of glacial acetic acid and 1 ml of calcium acetate solution (1 in 20) to the residual aqueous solution. No turbidity is produced within 5 min.
Sulfates
Not more than 0.3% Dissolve a 100 mg sample in 1 ml of diluted hydrochloric acid TS, and dilute to 30 to 40 ml with water. Proceed as directed in the Limit Test for Sulfates, beginning with the addition of 3 ml of barium chloride TS. Any turbidity produced does not exceed that shown in a control containing 0.6 ml of 0.01 N sulfuric acid.
Lead (Vol. 4)
Not more than 2 mg/kg Determine using an atomic absorption technique appropriate to the specified level. The selection of sample size and method of sample preparation may be based on the principles of the method described in Volume 4, “Instrumental Methods.”

FAO JECFA Monograph 1 (2006)

Every name it appears under

32 recorded names. A label may use any of them.

E number

  • E381

INS number

  • 381

CAS registry number

  • 1185-57-5

As it appears in regulation

  • Ferric ammonium citrate
  • Iron ammonium citrate

Other names

  • 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, ammonium iron(3+) salt
  • 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, ammonium iron(3+) salt (1:?:?)
  • 2-HYDROXY-1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID AMMONIUM IRON (3+) SALT
  • Ammonii ferri citras
  • Ammonium ferric citrate
  • Ammonium iron(3+) 2-hydroxy-1,2,3-propanetricarboxylate
  • Ammonium iron(3+) citrate
  • Ammonium iron(III) citrate
  • Citric acid, ammonium iron salt, green
  • Citric acid, ammonium iron(3+) salt
  • Ferri Seltz
  • Ferri-ammoniumcitrat, braunes
  • Ferric ammonium citrate
  • FERRIC AMMONIUM CITRATE (USP)
  • FERRIC AMMONIUM CITRATE CONTAINS NOT LESS THAN 16.5 PERCENT AND NOT MORE THAN 18.5 PERCENT OF IRON
  • Ferric Ammonium Citrate, Brown
  • Ferric ammonium citrate, green
  • Ferriseltz
  • Ferrum citricum ammoniatum fuscum
  • HSDB 446
  • Ins no.381
  • Ins-381
  • Iron ammonium citrate
  • Iron ammonium citrate, green
  • iron(3+) 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid amine
  • UVP74NG1C5

Systematic names

  • iron(3+) 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylate ammoniate

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 INS 381?
INS 381 is Ferric ammonium citrate. Ferric ammonium citrate is an iron fortificant and an anticaking agent for salt.
What is Ferric ammonium citrate used for in food?
It is listed as an anticaking agent — the role Codex and the US assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
Is Ferric ammonium citrate banned in Europe?
No. Ferric ammonium citrate 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 Ferric ammonium citrate permitted?
Of the seven regulators this site reads, Australia and New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, the US and the Codex standard 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 Ferric ammonium citrate vegan?
Yes. Ferric ammonium citrate is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.

Sources for this page

  • anz retrieved 2026-10-17
  • jp retrieved 2026-10-18
  • kr retrieved 2026-10-18
  • ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17
  • gsfa retrieved 2026-09-07
  • jecfaspecs retrieved 2026-09-23

Full licence terms and publisher details on Sources. How this page is built and updated: Method.

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