Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC)
24938-16-7 · Basic methacrylate copolymer · E 1205 · METHACRYLATE COPOLYMER, BASIC (BMC) · E1205 · 1205 · Basic methacrylate copolymer · Aluseline metakrülaatkopolümeer · Basic methacrylate copolymer · Basisch methacrylaatcopolymeer · Basisches Methacrylat-Copolymer · Basisk metakrylatsampolymer · Basisk methacrylat-copolymer · Bazický kopolymer methakrylátu · Bazinis metakrilato kopolimeras · Bázikus metakrilát-kopolimer · Copolimer metacrilat bazic · Copolimero di metacrilato basico · Copolymère méthacrylate basique · Copolímero de metacrilato básico · Emäksinen metakrylaattikopolymeeri · Koplimer metakrilat bażiku · KOPOLIMERU METAKRILAT BAŻIKU · Kopolymér základného metakrylátu · Metakrilāta bāzes kopolimērs · Osnovni kopolimer metakrilata · Zasadowy kopolimer metakrylanu · Βασικό μεθακρυλικό συμπολυμερές · Основен метакрилат кополимерE number E1205INS 1205CAS 24938-16-7
Listed as a glazing agent and a carrier by Codex.
Listed as glazing and surface-finishing agents (Codex) · carriers (Codex)
- Codex Alimentarius: Glazing agent — CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 1205
- Codex Alimentarius: Carrier — CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 1205
Basic methacrylate copolymer is a film coating for tablets and supplements, chosen because it dissolves in stomach acid but not in the mouth — so it masks a bitter taste without delaying release.
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 | Permitted, with conditions | 1 food category highest permitted level 100,000 mg/kg ML = 100000 mg/kg. except food supplements in chewable form. | Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II, as amended by (EU) No 2018/1497retrieved 2026-10-18 |
| Great Britain | Permitted, with conditions | 1 food category highest permitted level 100,000 mg/kg or mg/l ML = 100000. except food supplements in chewable form. | Assimilated Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II (as at 28 June 2024)retrieved 2026-10-18 |
| 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 | No 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 States | Not listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited. | ||
| Codex Alimentarius | Permitted, with conditions | 8 food categories no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice) Show every food category and its notes
| CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 1205and 8 further provisionsretrieved 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.
| European Union | 100,000 mg/kg | 1 numeric limit |
|---|---|---|
| Great Britain | 100,000 mg/kg | 1 numeric limit |
| Codex Alimentarius | — | 9 GMP |
GRAS notices to the FDA
A GRAS notice is a company’s conclusion that a substance is generally recognised as safe for the use it describes. FDA’s letter responds to that conclusion, for that notifier and that use. It is not a listing in 21 CFR, and it is not counted as a US permission above. The substance and use are as FDA’s inventory words them; this site matched the notice to this page by exact name.
GRN No. 710 · Basic methacrylate copolymer · Ramboll Environ
Intended use: Coating for various micronutrients to prevent degradation at a level up to 2.3 g/day.
FDA’s response (2017-12-08): At the notifier's request, FDA ceased to evaluate this notice
What it is made from
Produced by copolymerising methacrylate esters carrying basic amine groups.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 24938-16-7
How the EU defines it
The legal specification an additive must meet to be sold as this E number in the EU — what it is, how it may be made, and the purity it must reach. From Commission Regulation (EU) No 231/2012.
E 1205 Basic methacrylate copolymer
Basic methacrylate copolymer is manufactured by thermic controlled polymerisation of the monomers methyl methacrylate, butyl methacrylate and dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (dissolved in propan-2-ol), by using a free radical donor initiator system. An alkyl mercaptane is used as chain modifying agent. The polymer solution is extruded and granulated under vacuum to remove residual volatile components. The granules resulting are commercialized as such or undergo a milling step (micronisation).
Synonyms: Basic butylated methacrylate copolymer; amino methacrylate copolymer; aminoalkyl methacrylate copolymer E; butyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, methyl methacrylate polymer; butyl methacrylate, methyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate polymer
Assay, identification and purity criteria
Description and assay
- Chemical name
- Poly(butyl methacrylate-co-(2-dimethylaminoethyl)methacrylate-co-methyl methacrylate) 1:2:1
- Chemical formula
- Poly[(CH₂:C(CH₃)CO₂(CH₂)₂N(CH₃)₂)-co-(CH₂:C(CH₃)CO₂CH₃)-co-(CH₂:C(CH₃)CO₂(CH₂)₃CH₃)]
- Weight average molecular weight estimated by gel permeation chromatography
- Approximately 47 000 g/mol
- Particle size of the powder (when used forms a film)
- < 50 μm at least 95 % < 20 μm at least 50 % < 3 μm not more than 10 %
- Assay (according to Ph. Eur. 2.2.20 ‘potentiometric titration’)
- 20,8-25,5 % dimethylaminoethyl (DMAE) groups on dry substance
- Description
- Granules are colourless to yellow tinged, the powder is white
Identification
- Infrared absorption spectroscopy
- To be identified
- Viscosity of a 12,5 % solution in 60:40 (w/w/) propan-2-ol to acetone
- 3-6 mPa.s
- Refractive index
- [n]D ²⁰ 1,380-1,385
- Solubility
- 1 g dissolves in 7 g Methanol, Ethanol, propan-2-ol, dichloromethane, aqueous Hydrochloric acid 1N. Not soluble in petroleum ether.
Purity criteria
- Loss of drying
- Not more than 2,0 % (105 °C, 3 h)
- Alkali value
- 162-198 mg KOH/g of dried substance
- Sulphated ash
- Not more than 0,1 %
- Residual monomers
- Butylmethacrylate < 1 000 mg/kg Methyl methacrylate < 1 000 mg/kg Dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate < 1 000 mg/kg
- Solvent residues
- propan-2-ol < 0,5 % Butanol < 0,5 % Methanol < 0,1 %
- Arsenic
- Not more than 1 mg/kg
- Lead
- Not more than 3 mg/kg
- Mercury
- Not more than 0,1 mg/kg
- Cadmium
- Not more than 1 mg/kg
Every name it appears under
29 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
E number
- E1205
INS number
- 1205
CAS registry number
- 24938-16-7
As it appears in regulation
- Basic methacrylate copolymer
Other names
- Basic methacrylate copolymer
- E 1205
- METHACRYLATE COPOLYMER, BASIC (BMC)
Hazard reference values
| Type | Value | Population | Assessed by | Opinion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADI | not specified | — | JECFA | 2018 |
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 E 1205?
- E 1205 is Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC). Basic methacrylate copolymer is a film coating for tablets and supplements, chosen because it dissolves in stomach acid but not in the mouth — so it masks a bitter taste without delaying release.
- What is Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC) used for in food?
- It is listed as a glazing agent and a carrier — the role Codex assigns it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
- Where is Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC) permitted?
- Of the seven regulators this site reads, the EU, Great Britain 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 Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC) vegan?
- Yes. Methacrylate copolymer, basic (BMC) is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.
Sources for this page
- eu retrieved 2026-10-18
- gb retrieved 2026-10-18
- gsfa retrieved 2026-09-07
- euspecs retrieved 2026-10-18
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