Natamycin (pimaricin)

E number E235INS 235CAS 7681-93-8

Used as a preservative.

Natamycin is an antifungal used on the surface of cheese and cured sausage, where it stops mould without affecting the bacteria the product needs to ripen. It stays on the surface rather than penetrating.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Natamycin (pimaricin) by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted, with conditions21 CFR 172.155retrieved 2026-09-07
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFAPermitted, with conditions

7 food categories

highest permitted level 40 mg/kg

Show every food category
  • 01.6.1 Unripened cheese — 40 mg/kg
  • 01.6.2 Ripened cheese — 40 mg/kg
  • 01.6.4 Processed cheese — 40 mg/kg
  • 01.6.5 Cheese analogues — 40 mg/kg
  • 01.6.6 Whey protein cheese — 40 mg/kg
  • 08.2.1.2 Cured (including salted) and dried non-heat treated processed meat, poultry, and game products in whole pieces or cuts — 6 mg/kg
  • 08.3.1.2 Cured (including salted) and dried non-heat treated processed comminuted meat, poultry, and game products — 20 mg/kg
CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 235and 6 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

What it is made from

Produced by fermenting the bacterium Streptomyces natalensis. It is a medical antifungal as well as a food preservative, which is why its food use is tightly limited.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian
CAS registry number
7681-93-8
InChIKey
NCXMLFZGDNKEPB-FFPOYIOWSA-N
PubChem
CID 5284447

Every name it appears under

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

E number

  • E235

INS number

  • 235

CAS registry number

  • 7681-93-8

As it appears in regulation

  • Natamycin (pimaricin)

Other names

  • 0(5,7)]octacosa-8,14,16,18,20-pentaene-25-carboxylic ac
  • 73 - Natamycin (pimaricin) in cheese
  • 8O0C852CPO
  • Antibiotic A-5283
  • Delvocid
  • Delvolan
  • Delvopos
  • E 235
  • Fermentation product from Streptomyces chattanoogensis
  • INS NO.235
  • INS-235
  • Mycophyt
  • Myprozine
  • Natacyn
  • Natafucin
  • Natamicina
  • Natamycin
  • Natamycin (Standard)
  • Natamycin(Pimaricin)
  • Natamycin, Pharmaceutical Secondary Standard; Certified Reference Material
  • Natamycin, United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Reference Standard
  • Natamycin, VETRANAL(TM), analytical standard
  • Natamycine
  • Natamycinum
  • NCXMLFZGDNKEPB-FFPOYIOWSA-N
  • NICOTINAMIDE_ADENINE_DINUCLEOTIDE
  • Pimafucin
  • Pimafugin;
  • Pimaracin
  • Pimaricin
  • Pimaricin 100 |Ig/mL in Water
  • Pimaricin preparation, ~2.5%, aqueous suspension
  • Pimaricin, from Streptomyces chattanoogensis, >=95% (HPLC)
  • Pimaricin; Natamycin
  • Pimaricine
  • Pimarizin
  • Synogil
  • Tennecetin
  • Tymasil

Systematic names

  • (1R,3S,5R,7R,8E,12R,14E,16E,18E,20E,22R,24S,25R,26S)-22-(((2R,3S,4S,5S,6R)-4-amino-3,5-dihydroxy-6-methyltetrahydro-2H-pyran-2-yl)oxy)-1,3,26-trihydroxy-12-methyl-10-oxo-6,11,28-trioxatricyclo[22.3.1.
  • (1R,3S,5R,7R,8E,12R,14E,16E,18E,20E,22R,24S,25R,26S)-22-{[(2R,3S,4S,5S,6R)-4-amino-3,5-dihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxy}-1,3,26-trihydroxy-12-methyl-10-oxo-6,11,28-trioxatricyclo[22.3.1.0^{5,7}]octacosa-8,14,16,18,20-pentaene-25-carboxylic acid
  • 16-(3-Amino-3,6-didesoxy-beta-D-mannopyranosyloxy)-5,6-epoxy-8,12,14-trihydroxy-26-methyl-2,10-dioxo-1-oxacyclohexacosa-3,17,19,21,23-pentaen-13-carbonsaeure
  • Stereoisomer of 22-((3-amino-3,6-dideoxy-beta-D-mannopyranosyl)oxy)-1,3,26-trihydroxy-12-methyl-10-oxo-6,11,28-trioxatricyclo(22.3.1.0(sup 5,7))octacosa-8,14,16,18,20-pentaene-25-carboxylic acid

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 by hand rather than machine-read, and none has been written for this substance yet.

Sources for this page

  • ecfr retrieved 2026-09-07
  • gsfa retrieved 2026-09-07

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

Machine-readable:/api/v1/additives/natamycin-pimaricin.json