Ferric chloride
10025-77-1 · 7705-08-0 · 0I2XIN602U · Caswell No. 459 · CCRIS 2299 · Chlorure ferrique · Chlorure perrique · Cl3FeO6 · EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 034901 · Fe(III) chloride · Fe/ppm Pd for nitro group reductions · FeCl3 · FERRIC CHLORIDE · Ferric chloride hexahydrate, Iron trichloride hexahydrate · FERRIC CHLORIDE, ANHYDROUS · Ferric chloride, hexahydrate · Ferric chloride, solid · Ferric trichloride · Ferric trichloride hexahydrate · FERRUM MURIATICUM · Flores martis · HSDB 449 · Iron (III) chloride hexahydrate, A.C.S. reagent · Iron (III) chloride, Trace metals grade, 99.9% · iron (III) cloride · iron (III) trichloride · Iron (III), chloride, hexahydrate · Iron chloride · Iron chloride (Fe2Cl3) · Iron chloride (FeCl3) · IRON CHLORIDE (FECL3.6H2O) · Iron chloride anhydrous · iron chloride hexahydrate · Iron chloride, solid · Iron perchloride · IRON PERCHLORIDE, HEXAHYDRATE · Iron sesquichloride · Iron sesquichloride (DOT) · Iron trichloride · Iron trichloride hexahydrate · iron(3+) chloride · Iron(3+) chloride, hexahydrate · Iron(3+) chloride--water (1/3/6) · iron(3+) hexahydrate trichloride · iron(3+);trichloride;hexahydrate · Iron(III) chloride · Iron(III) chloride anhydrous · Iron(III) chloride on silica gel, powder, extent of labeling: 5 wt. % loading · Iron(III) chloride, anhydrous, powder, >=99.99% trace metals basis · Iron(III) chloride, CP · Iron(III) chloride, LR, anhydrous, >=97% · Iron(III) chloride, p.a., 98% · Iron(III) chloride, reagent grade, 97% · Iron(III) chloride, sublimed grade, >=99.9% trace metals basis · Iron(III) chloride, technical grade, 58% · iron-(III) chloride · iron-(III)-chloride · Natural molysite · Perchlorure de fer · TDA Reagent, for microbiology · trichloroiron · U38V3ZVV3V · USP Solution Ferric Chloride TS Conforms to USP · WLN: FE G3 · Iron(3+);trichloride;hexahydrate · trichloroiron · Ferric chlorideCAS 10025-77-1
Listed as an enzyme, a flavouring agent and a processing aid by the US.
Listed as enzymes (US) · flavouring agents and adjuvants (US) · processing aids (US)
- United States: Enzyme — FDA, Substances Added to Food: FERRIC CHLORIDE
- United States: Flavoring agent or adjuvant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: FERRIC CHLORIDE
- United States: Flavoring agents and adjuvants — 21 CFR 184.1297, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(12)
- United States: Processing aid — FDA, Substances Added to Food: FERRIC CHLORIDE
Ferric chloride is an iron source and processing aid, used in fortification and in water treatment.
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 | Permitted, with conditions | Designated additive: Appended Table 1, item 88, 塩化第二鉄 (“Ferric Chloride” in the unofficial English translation). …Designated additive: Appended Table 1, item 88, 塩化第二鉄 (“Ferric Chloride” 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 Korea | Permitted, 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), 염화제이철; nutrient: 철(Fe). Standard for use (사용기준) of 염화제이철: (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 States | Permitted | 21 CFR 184.1297retrieved 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.
| Japan | — | 1 no quantity stated |
|---|---|---|
| South Korea | — | 1 no quantity stated |
| United States | — | 1 no quantity stated |
No regulator sets a figure for Ferric chloride. 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 reacting iron with chlorine or hydrochloric acid.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 10025-77-1
- InChIKey
- RBTARNINKXHZNM-UHFFFAOYSA-K
- PubChem
- CID 24380
Every name it appears under
67 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
CAS registry number
- 10025-77-1
- 7705-08-0
As it appears in regulation
- Ferric chloride
Other names
- 0I2XIN602U
- Caswell No. 459
- CCRIS 2299
- Chlorure ferrique
- Chlorure perrique
- Cl3FeO6
- EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 034901
- Fe(III) chloride
- Fe/ppm Pd for nitro group reductions
- FeCl3
- FERRIC CHLORIDE
- Ferric chloride hexahydrate, Iron trichloride hexahydrate
- FERRIC CHLORIDE, ANHYDROUS
- Ferric chloride, hexahydrate
- Ferric chloride, solid
- Ferric trichloride
- Ferric trichloride hexahydrate
- FERRUM MURIATICUM
- Flores martis
- HSDB 449
- Iron (III) chloride hexahydrate, A.C.S. reagent
- Iron (III) chloride, Trace metals grade, 99.9%
- iron (III) cloride
- iron (III) trichloride
- Iron (III), chloride, hexahydrate
- Iron chloride
- Iron chloride (Fe2Cl3)
- Iron chloride (FeCl3)
- IRON CHLORIDE (FECL3.6H2O)
- Iron chloride anhydrous
- iron chloride hexahydrate
- Iron chloride, solid
- Iron perchloride
- IRON PERCHLORIDE, HEXAHYDRATE
- Iron sesquichloride
- Iron sesquichloride (DOT)
- Iron trichloride
- Iron trichloride hexahydrate
- iron(3+) chloride
- Iron(3+) chloride, hexahydrate
- Iron(3+) chloride--water (1/3/6)
- iron(3+) hexahydrate trichloride
- iron(3+);trichloride;hexahydrate
- Iron(III) chloride
- Iron(III) chloride anhydrous
- Iron(III) chloride on silica gel, powder, extent of labeling: 5 wt. % loading
- Iron(III) chloride, anhydrous, powder, >=99.99% trace metals basis
- Iron(III) chloride, CP
- Iron(III) chloride, LR, anhydrous, >=97%
- Iron(III) chloride, p.a., 98%
- Iron(III) chloride, reagent grade, 97%
- Iron(III) chloride, sublimed grade, >=99.9% trace metals basis
- Iron(III) chloride, technical grade, 58%
- iron-(III) chloride
- iron-(III)-chloride
- Natural molysite
- Perchlorure de fer
- TDA Reagent, for microbiology
- trichloroiron
- U38V3ZVV3V
- USP Solution Ferric Chloride TS Conforms to USP
- WLN: FE G3
Systematic names
- Iron(3+);trichloride;hexahydrate
- trichloroiron
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 Ferric chloride?
- Ferric chloride is an iron source and processing aid, used in fortification and in water treatment.
- What is Ferric chloride used for in food?
- It is listed as an enzyme, a flavouring agent and a processing aid — the role the US assigns it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
- Is Ferric chloride banned in Europe?
- No. Ferric chloride is not on the EU's list of authorised food additives, but it would not be expected to be: every role regulators give it — enzyme, flavouring agent and processing aid — the EU regulates under separate law. Its absence from the additives list says nothing about whether it is permitted in Europe.
- Where is Ferric chloride permitted?
- Of the seven regulators this site reads, Japan, 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 Ferric chloride vegan?
- Yes. Ferric chloride is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.
Sources for this page
- jp retrieved 2026-10-18
- kr retrieved 2026-10-18
- ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17
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