Sodium bicarbonate

E number E500INS 500(ii)CAS 144-55-8

Used as an acidity regulator — Codex also lists it as anticaking agent, raising agent, stabilizer, thickener.

Sodium bicarbonate is baking soda: a raising agent that releases carbon dioxide when it meets an acid or heat. It is also an acidity regulator in drinks and confectionery.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Sodium bicarbonate by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationPermitted21 CFR 184.1736retrieved 2026-09-07
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFAPermitted, with conditions

14 food categories

highest permitted level 2,000 mg/kg

Show every food category
  • 01.2.1.2 Fermented milks (plain), heat-treated after fermentation — GMP
  • 01.4.1 Pasteurized cream (plain) — GMP
  • 01.4.2 Sterilized and UHT creams, whipping and whipped creams, and reduced fat creams (plain) — GMP
  • 01.8.2 Dried whey and whey products, excluding whey cheeses — GMP
  • 02.2.1 Butter — GMP
  • 06.4.1 Fresh pastas and noodles and like products — GMP
  • 06.4.2 Dried pastas and noodles and like products — GMP
  • 09.2.2 Frozen battered fish, fish fillets and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms — GMP
  • 12.2.1 Herbs and spices — GMP
  • 13.1.1 Infant formulae — 2,000 mg/kg
  • 13.1.2 Follow-up formulae — GMP
  • 13.1.3 Formulae for special medical purposes for infants — 2,000 mg/kg
  • 13.2 Complementary foods for infants and young children — GMP
  • 14.1.5 Coffee, coffee substitutes, tea, herbal infusions, and other hot cereal and grain beverages, excluding cocoa — GMP
CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 500(ii)and 14 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

What it is made from

Manufactured by the Solvay process from salt, limestone and ammonia, or mined as the mineral nahcolite and refined.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian
CAS registry number
144-55-8
InChIKey
UIIMBOGNXHQVGW-UHFFFAOYSA-M
PubChem
CID 516892

Every name it appears under

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

E number

  • E500

INS number

  • 500(ii)

CAS registry number

  • 144-55-8

As it appears in regulation

  • Sodium bicarbonate

Other names

  • 8MDF5V39QO
  • After Bite Advanced
  • After Bite Kids
  • After Bite X Tech
  • AHHH Bite Relief
  • Assured Bug Bite Relief
  • Baking soda
  • Bicarbonate of soda
  • Bicarbonate, Sodium
  • Carbonic acid monosodium salt
  • Carbonic acid sodium salt (1:1)
  • Col-evac
  • De LA Cruz Desempacho
  • E 500(ii)
  • General Surgery Kit
  • Genitron tp-bch 51051
  • Humco Sodium Bicarbonate
  • Hydrocerol esc 5671
  • Hydrogen Carbonate, Sodium
  • INS NO.500(II)
  • INS-500(II)
  • Insect sting relief latex
  • Insect Sting Relief Pad
  • Jusonin
  • LIFE Q
  • Medis Sodium Bicarbonate
  • Meylon
  • Monosodium carbonate
  • Monosodium hydrogen carbonate
  • MultiBic component sodium hydrogen carbonate
  • Nabic
  • NaHCO3
  • Natrii hydrogencarbonas
  • Natrii hydrogenocarbonas
  • Natrium bicarbonicum
  • Natrium hydrogencarbonicum
  • Natriumhydrogenkarbonat
  • Natrum bicarbonicum
  • Neut
  • Nurse harveys
  • Rapidol Sodium Bicarbonate
  • S-bicarb
  • S-bicarb sf
  • Sel De vichy
  • Soda Mint
  • Soda, Baking
  • Sodibic
  • sodium acid carbonate
  • Sodium bicarbonate
  • Sodium Bicarbonate 10 gr
  • Sodium Bicarbonate 5 gr
  • Sodium bicarbonate anhydrous
  • Sodium Bicarbonate Antacid
  • Sodium bicarbonate in plastic container
  • Sodium carbonate (Na(HCO3))
  • Sodium hydrogen carbonate
  • Sodium hydrogencarbonate
  • Soludal
  • Thamicarb

Systematic names

  • Sodium;hydrogen carbonate

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/sodium-bicarbonate.json