Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer
9010-88-2 · Copolymer of ethyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate · E 1206 · neutral methacrylate copolymer · E1206 · Poly(methyl methacrylate-co-ethyl acrylate) · Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer · Copolimer metacrilat neutru · Copolimero di metacrilato neutro · Copolymère de méthacrylate neutre · Copolímero de metacrilato neutro · Koplimeru tal-metakrilat newtrali · KOPOLIMERU TAL-METAKRILAT NEWTRALI · Neitrālais metakrilāta kopolimērs · Neutraal methacrylaatcopolymeer · Neutraali metakrylaattikopolymeeri · Neutraalne metakrülaatkopolümeer · Neutral metakrylatsampolymer · Neutral methacrylat-copolymer · Neutral methacrylate copolymer · Neutrales Methacrylat-Copolymer · Neutralni kopolimer metakrilata · Neutralny kopolimer metakrylanu · Neutralus metakrilato kopolimeras · Neutrálny kopolymér metakrylátu · Neutrální kopolymer methakrylátu · nevtralni kopolimer metakrilata · Semleges metakrilát-kopolimer · ΟΥΔΕΤΕΡΟ ΜΕΘΑΚΡΥΛΙΚΟ ΠΟΛΥΜΕΡΕΣ · Ουδέτερο μεθακρυλικό συμπολυμερές · Неутрален метакрилат кополимерE number E1206CAS 9010-88-2
Neutral methacrylate copolymer is a film coating for solid food supplements, used to control how quickly a tablet releases its contents. The EU permits it only in that one category.
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 200,000 mg/kg ML = 200000 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 200,000 mg/kg or mg/l ML = 200000. 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 | 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.
| European Union | 200,000 mg/kg | 1 numeric limit |
|---|---|---|
| Great Britain | 200,000 mg/kg | 1 numeric limit |
What it is made from
Produced by copolymerising methacrylate esters that carry no charged groups, so the coating's behaviour does not depend on the acidity it meets.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 9010-88-2
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 1206 Neutral methacrylate copolymer
Neutral methacrylate copolymer is a fully polymerised copolymer of methyl methacrylate and ethyl acrylate. It is produced using a process of emulsion polymerisation. It is manufactured by redox initiated polymerisation of the monomers ethyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate by using a free radical donor redox initiator system stabilised with polyethylene glycol monostearyl ether and vinylic acid/sodium hydroxide. Residual monomers are removed by means of water vapour distillation.
Synonyms: Ethyl acrylate methyl methacrylate polymer; Ethyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate polymer; Ethyl acrylate, polymer with methyl methacrylate; Methyl methacrylate, ethyl acrylate polymer; Methyl methacrylate, polymer with ethyl acrylate
Assay, identification and purity criteria
Description and assay
- CAS No
- 9010-88-2
- Chemical name
- Poly(ethylacrylate-co-methyl methacrylate) 2:1
- Chemical formula
- Poly[(CH₂:CHCO₂CH₂CH₃)-co-(CH₂:C(CH₃)CO₂CH₃)]
- Weight average molecular weight
- Approximately 600 000 g/mol
- Assay/Residue on evaporation
- 28,5–31,5 % 1 g dispersion is dried in an oven for 3 hours at 110 °C.
- Description
- Milky-white dispersion (the commercial form is a 30 % dispersion of the dry substance in water) of low viscosity with a faint characteristic odour.
Identification
- Infrared absorption spectroscopy
- Characteristic of the compound
- Viscosity
- Max. 50 mPa.s, 30 rpm/20 °C (Brookfield viscosimetry)
- pH-value
- 5,5–8,6
- Relative density (at 20 °C)
- 1,037–1,047
- Solubility
- The dispersion is miscible with water in any proportion. The polymer and the dispersion are freely soluble in acetone, ethanol and isopropyl alcohol. Not soluble when mixed with 1 N sodium hydroxide in a ratio of 1:2.
Purity criteria
- Sulphated ash
- Not more than 0,4 % in the dispersion
- Residual monomers
- Total of monomers (sum of methyl methacrylate and ethyl acrylate): not more than 100 mg/kg in the dispersion
- Residual emulsifier
- Polyethylene glycol monostearyl ether (macrogol stearyl ether 20) not more than 0,7 % in the dispersion
- Solvent residues
- Ethanol not more than 0,5 % in the dispersion Methanol not more than 0,1 % in the dispersion
- Arsenic
- Not more than 0,3 mg/kg in the dispersion
- Lead
- Not more than 0,9 mg/kg in the dispersion
- Mercury
- Not more than 0,03 mg/kg in the dispersion
- Cadmium
- Not more than 0,3 mg/kg in the dispersion
Every name it appears under
31 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
E number
- E1206
CAS registry number
- 9010-88-2
As it appears in regulation
- Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer
Other names
- Copolymer of ethyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate
- E 1206
- neutral methacrylate copolymer
Systematic names
- Poly(methyl methacrylate-co-ethyl acrylate)
Hazard reference values
| Type | Value | Population | Assessed by | Opinion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADI | withdrawn | — | JECFA | 2023 |
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 1206?
- E 1206 is Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer. Neutral methacrylate copolymer is a film coating for solid food supplements, used to control how quickly a tablet releases its contents. The EU permits it only in that one category.
- Where is Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer permitted?
- Of the seven regulators this site reads, the EU and Great Britain 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 Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer vegan?
- Yes. Neutral Methacrylate Copolymer 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
- euspecs retrieved 2026-10-18
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