Magnesium fumarate

CAS 7704-71-4

Listed as an acidity regulator and a nutrient supplement by Canada and the US.

Listed as acidity regulators (CA) · nutrient supplements (US)
Chemical structure of Magnesium fumarate, from PubChem compound 6433510
Structure from PubChem CID 6433510 (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.

The magnesium salt of fumaric acid, used as an acidity regulator and as a source of magnesium.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Magnesium fumarate 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 ZealandNo 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.
CanadaHealth CanadaPermitted

no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice)

In: Unstandardized foods. Purpose: Acidity regulator. Limit: Good Manufacturing Practice.

Health Canada, List of Permitted Acidity Regulators and Acid-Reacting Materials (List 10), item M.3retrieved 2026-10-17
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 AgencyNo 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 KoreaMinistry of Food and Drug SafetyNo listing matchedThis site imports Part III of South Korea’s Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, matched by CAS number, then INS number, then exact name. Mixed preparations and sanitisers are not imported, and an entry whose identifiers disagreed with a page’s is held for review, so an empty row does not show that South Korea does not permit the substance.
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted, with conditions

Named in 21 CFR 172.350, which provides that fumaric acid and its calcium, ferrous, magnesium, potassium and sodium salts may be safely used in food under the stated conditions. The section is held on this site as the page fumaric-acid-and-salts-of-fumaric-acid; read it for the specifications and conditions.

21 CFR 172.350retrieved 2026-10-18
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFANot 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.

Canada—1 GMP
United States—1 no quantity stated

No regulator sets a figure for Magnesium fumarate. 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

Made by neutralising fumaric acid with a magnesium source.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.

CAS registry number
7704-71-4
InChIKey
QUIOHQITLKCGNW-TYYBGVCCSA-L
PubChem
CID 6433510

Every name it appears under

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

CAS registry number

  • 6880-23-5
  • 7704-71-4

Other names

  • 2-Butenedioic acid (2E)-, magnesium salt
  • 2-BUTENEDIOIC ACID (2E)-, MAGNESIUM SALT (1:1)
  • 2-Butenedioic acid (2E)-, magnesium salt (1:?)
  • 2-Butenedioic acid (E)-, magnesium salt
  • 2-Butenedioic acid (E)-, magnesium salt (1:1)
  • A3NK08CQA4
  • FUMARIC ACID, MAGNESIUM SALT
  • Fumaric acid, magnesium salt (1:1)
  • Magnesium 2-butenedioate, (E)-
  • Magnesium Fumarate
  • magnesium;(E)-but-2-enedioate
  • QUIOHQITLKCGNW-TYYBGVCCSA-L

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 Magnesium fumarate?
The magnesium salt of fumaric acid, used as an acidity regulator and as a source of magnesium.
What is Magnesium fumarate used for in food?
It is listed as an acidity regulator and a nutrient supplement — the role Canada and the US assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
Is Magnesium fumarate banned in Europe?
No. Magnesium fumarate 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 Magnesium fumarate permitted?
Of the seven regulators this site reads, Canada 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 Magnesium fumarate vegan?
Yes. Magnesium fumarate is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.

Sources for this page

  • ca retrieved 2026-10-17
  • us-listings retrieved 2026-10-18

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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