Quinine

CAS 130-95-0

Chemical structure of Quinine, from PubChem compound 3034034
Structure from PubChem CID 3034034 (National Library of Medicine, public domain). A depiction of one compound: where a listing covers a family, or a substance has no single structure, this page shows none.

Quinine is the bitter compound in tonic water, used at low levels in a limited range of drinks. It is also an antimalarial drug, and tonic water began as a way of taking it.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Quinine 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 ZealandPermitted, with conditions

3 food categories

highest permitted level 300 mg/kg

Show every food category
  • 14.1.3 Water based flavoured drinks — 100 mg/kgOnly tonic drinks, bitter drinks and quininedrinks.
  • 14.2.3 Wine based drinks and reduced alcohol wines — 300 mg/kg
  • 14.3 Alcoholic beverages not included in item 14.2 — 300 mg/kg
Food Standards Code, Schedule 15, S15—5and 2 further provisionsretrieved 2026-10-17
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 AgencyNo 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 KoreaMinistry of Food and Drug SafetyNo 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 StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted, with conditions21 CFR 172.575retrieved 2026-10-17
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.

Australia and New Zealand100 mg/kg – 300 mg/kg3 numeric limit
United States—1 no quantity stated

What it is made from

Extracted from the bark of the cinchona tree, or produced synthetically. The food limit is far below any medicinal dose.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.

CAS registry number
130-95-0
InChIKey
LOUPRKONTZGTKE-WZBLMQSHSA-N
PubChem
CID 3034034

Every name it appears under

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

CAS registry number

  • 130-95-0
  • 72402-53-0

As it appears in regulation

  • Quinine

Other names

  • (-)-Quinine
  • (-)quinine
  • (1R)-(6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)((2S,4S,5R)-5-vinylquinuclidin-2-yl)methanol
  • (6-methoxy-4-quinolyl)(5-vinyl-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]oct-2-yl)methanol
  • (8-alpha,9R)-6'-Methoxycinchonan-9-ol
  • (8.alpha.,9R)-6'-Methoxycinchonan-9-ol
  • (8S,9R)-6'-Methoxycinchonan-9-ol
  • (8S,9R)-Quinine
  • (9R)-6'-Methoxy-3alpha,8alpha-cinchonan-9-ol
  • (9R)-6'-methoxy-8alpha-cinchonan-9-ol
  • (R)-(-)-quinine
  • (R)-(-)-Quinine, 6-methoxycinchonidine
  • (R)-(6-methoxy-4-quinolyl)-[(2S,4S,5R)-5-vinylquinuclidin-2-yl]methanol
  • (R)-(6-Methoxyquinolin-4-yl)((1S,2S,4S,5R)-5-vinylquinuclidin-2-yl)methanol
  • (R)-(6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)((2S,4S,8R)-8-vinylquinuclidin-2-yl)methanol
  • 2-Quinuclidinemethanol, alpha-(6-methoxy-4-quinolyl)-5-vinyl-
  • 6'-Methoxycinchonan-9-ol
  • 6'-Methoxycinchonidine
  • 6'-Methoxycinchonine
  • 6-Methoxycinchonine
  • A7V27PHC7A
  • Aflukin
  • Biquinate (*Bisulfate heptathydrate*)
  • CAS-130-95-0
  • CCRIS 5755
  • Chinin
  • Chinine
  • chininum
  • Chininum purum
  • Cinchonan-9-ol, 6'-methoxy-
  • Cinchonan-9-ol, 6'-methoxy-, (8.alpha.,9R)-, sulfate
  • Cinchonan-9-ol, 6'-methoxy-, (8a,9R)-
  • Dentojel (*Bisulfate heptathydrate*)
  • Epitope ID:131786
  • GNF-Pf-506
  • HSDB 2501
  • Hydrochloride, Quinine
  • Quinamm (*2:1 Sulfate salt*), dihydrate
  • Quine (*2:1 Sulfate salt*, dihydrate)
  • Quinidine Sulfate EP Impurity A
  • quinina
  • Quinine
  • Quinine (Standard)
  • quinine bisulphate
  • Quinine, 90%
  • Quinine, Anhydrous
  • Quinine, tannate
  • Quinineanhydrous
  • Quinoline alkaloid
  • Quinsan
  • Quinsan (*2:1 Sulfate salt*), dihydrate
  • Quinson
  • Quinsul
  • Rezquin

Systematic names

  • (5-ethenyl-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octan-2-yl)-(6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol
  • (R)-((4S,5R,7S)-5-ethenyl-1-azabicyclo(2.2.2)octan-7-yl)-(6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol
  • (R)-[(1S,2S,4S,5R)-5-ethenyl-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octan-2-yl](6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol
  • (R)-[(2S,4S,5R)-1-Aza-5-vinylbicyclo[2.2.2]oct-2-yl](6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol
  • (R)-[(2S,4S,5R)-5-ethenyl-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octan-2-yl](6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol
  • (R)-[(2S,4S,5R)-5-ethenyl-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octan-2-yl]-(6-methoxyquinolin-4-yl)methanol

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 Quinine?
Quinine is the bitter compound in tonic water, used at low levels in a limited range of drinks. It is also an antimalarial drug, and tonic water began as a way of taking it.
Is Quinine banned in Europe?
No. Quinine 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 Quinine permitted?
Of the seven regulators this site reads, Australia and New Zealand 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.
Is Quinine vegan?
Yes. Quinine is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.

Sources for this page

  • anz retrieved 2026-10-17
  • ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17

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

Machine-readable: a JSON record of this additive is given on request —how to ask for access.

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