Methyl N-methylanthranilate

CAS 85-91-6

Listed as a flavour enhancer and a flavouring agent by the US.

Listed as flavour enhancers (US) · flavouring agents and adjuvants (US)

Methyl N-methylanthranilate is the methyl ester of N-methylanthranilic acid. South Korea lists it among its flavouring substances, and 21 CFR 172.515 names it among the synthetic flavoring substances and adjuvants that may be used in food. FDA's inventory gives it FEMA number 2718. Japan also designates it (Appended Table 1, item 414).

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Methyl N-methylanthranilate 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 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 414, N―メチルアントラニル酸メチル(別名N―メチルアンスラニル酸メチル) (“Methyl N-Methylanthranilate” in the unofficial English translation). …

Designated additive: Appended Table 1, item 414, N―メチルアントラニル酸メチル(別名N―メチルアンスラニル酸メチル) (“Methyl N-Methylanthranilate” 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), entry N―メチルアントラニル酸メチル: (1) [may be used only for the purpose of flavouring] “N―メチルアントラニル酸メチルは、着香の目的以外に使用してはならない。” The Japanese is the standard as published. There is no official English translation of the Notification; 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 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, 1. …

Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 1. 일반식품첨가물 (general food additives), N-메틸안트라닐산메틸 (“Methyl N-Methylanthranilate”, the English the Code prints beside it). Main use (주용도) of N-메틸안트라닐산메틸: 향료. Standard for use (사용기준) of N-메틸안트라닐산메틸: (1) [may be used only for flavouring] “N-메틸안트라닐산메틸은 착향의 목적에 한하여 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 conditions

Named in the list of synthetic flavoring substances and adjuvants in 21 CFR 172.515(b), which may be safely used in food in the minimum quantity required to produce their intended effect. The section is held on this site as the page synthetic-flavoring-substances-and-adjuvants; read it for the conditions.

21 CFR 172.515retrieved 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.

Japan—1 no quantity stated
South Korea—1 no quantity stated
United States—1 no quantity stated

No regulator sets a figure for Methyl N-methylanthranilate. 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

The sources cited here do not say how it is made, so this page claims no route.

CAS registry number
85-91-6

Every name it appears under

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

Other names

  • Dimethyl anthranilate
  • Methyl N-methylanthranilate

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 Methyl N-methylanthranilate?
Methyl N-methylanthranilate is the methyl ester of N-methylanthranilic acid. South Korea lists it among its flavouring substances, and 21 CFR 172.515 names it among the synthetic flavoring substances and adjuvants that may be used in food. FDA's inventory gives it FEMA number 2718. Japan also designates it (Appended Table 1, item 414).
What is Methyl N-methylanthranilate used for in food?
It is listed as a flavour enhancer and a flavouring agent — the role the US assigns it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
Is Methyl N-methylanthranilate banned in Europe?
No. Methyl N-methylanthranilate 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 Methyl N-methylanthranilate 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.

Sources for this page

  • jp retrieved 2026-10-18
  • kr retrieved 2026-10-18
  • us-listings retrieved 2026-10-18

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

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