Monoisopropyl citrate
101396-15-0 · 1321-57-9 · (1-Methylethyl) dihydrogen 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylate · 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, 1-(1-methylethyl) ester · 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, mono(1-methylethyl) ester · 1-Isopropyl citrate · 2-hydroxy-2-(2-isopropoxy-2-oxo-ethyl)butanedioic acid · 2-Hydroxy-2-(2-isopropoxy-2-oxoethyl)succinic acid · 2-hydroxy-2-(2-oxo-2-propan-2-yloxyethyl)butanedioic acid · 2-hydroxy-2-[2-oxo-2-(propan-2-yloxy)ethyl]butanedioic acid · 2-Hydroxy-2-{2-oxo-2-[(propan-2-yl)oxy]ethyl}butanedioate · Citric Acid Isopropyl Ester · Citric acid, monoisopropyl ester · Mono(1-methylethyl) 2-hydroxy-1,2,3-propanetricarboxylate · Monoisopropyl Citrate · SKHXHUZZFVMERR-UHFFFAOYSA-NCAS 1321-57-9
Listed as a preservative, a sequestrant and a formulation aid by Canada and the US.
Listed as preservatives (CA) · sequestrants (US) · formulation aids (US) · synergists (US)
- Canada: Preservative — Health Canada, List of Permitted Preservatives (List 11)
- United States: Sequestrant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: MONOISOPROPYL CITRATE
- United States: Formulation aid — FDA, Substances Added to Food: MONOISOPROPYL CITRATE
- United States: Synergist — FDA, Substances Added to Food: MONOISOPROPYL CITRATE
A single isopropyl ester of citric acid, used as a sequestrant and antioxidant synergist in fats and oils.
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 | Permitted, with conditions | no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice) 3 permitted uses Show every permitted use
| Health Canada, List of Permitted Preservatives (List 11)and 2 further provisionsretrieved 2026-10-17 |
| 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 | 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 | 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.
| Canada | — | 2 GMP, 1 no quantity stated |
|---|
No regulator sets a figure for Monoisopropyl citrate. 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 FDA’s inventory records
This page holds no listing for Monoisopropyl citrate in the parts of 21 CFR this site reads. FDA’s Substances Added to Food inventory does carry it, as MONOISOPROPYL CITRATE, pointing at a food-contact regulation, not a listing for use in food: 21 CFR 175.300, 21 CFR 181.27.
Technical effects FDA records: formulation aid, sequestrant, synergist.
The inventory is an information resource: a row means FDA holds information about the substance’s use in food, not that the substance is listed for that use. It is shown apart from the permissions above and is not counted as a US permission anywhere on this site.
What it is made from
Made by esterifying one of citric acid's acid groups with propan-2-ol.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 1321-57-9
- InChIKey
- SKHXHUZZFVMERR-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- PubChem
- CID 9816081
Every name it appears under
16 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
CAS registry number
- 101396-15-0
- 1321-57-9
Other names
- (1-Methylethyl) dihydrogen 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylate
- 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, 1-(1-methylethyl) ester
- 1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, mono(1-methylethyl) ester
- 1-Isopropyl citrate
- 2-hydroxy-2-(2-isopropoxy-2-oxo-ethyl)butanedioic acid
- 2-Hydroxy-2-(2-isopropoxy-2-oxoethyl)succinic acid
- 2-hydroxy-2-(2-oxo-2-propan-2-yloxyethyl)butanedioic acid
- 2-hydroxy-2-[2-oxo-2-(propan-2-yloxy)ethyl]butanedioic acid
- 2-Hydroxy-2-{2-oxo-2-[(propan-2-yl)oxy]ethyl}butanedioate
- Citric Acid Isopropyl Ester
- Citric acid, monoisopropyl ester
- Mono(1-methylethyl) 2-hydroxy-1,2,3-propanetricarboxylate
- Monoisopropyl Citrate
- SKHXHUZZFVMERR-UHFFFAOYSA-N
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 Monoisopropyl citrate?
- A single isopropyl ester of citric acid, used as a sequestrant and antioxidant synergist in fats and oils.
- What is Monoisopropyl citrate used for in food?
- It is listed as a preservative, a sequestrant and a formulation aid — the role Canada and the US assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
- Where is Monoisopropyl citrate permitted?
- Of the seven regulators this site reads, Canada permits it. Each permission is for named foods at named levels, not a blanket one; the table on this page gives them with citations.
- Is Monoisopropyl citrate vegan?
- Yes. Monoisopropyl 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
- ca retrieved 2026-10-17
Full licence terms and publisher details on Sources. How this page is built and updated: Method.
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