Stearic acid

CAS 57-11-4

Stearic acid is a fatty acid used as a lubricant, release agent and flavouring, and as the starting point for a range of other additives.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Stearic acid 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 184.1090retrieved 2026-09-07
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFANot listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited.

What it is made from

Obtained by splitting fats and oils. Vegetable sources such as palm and coconut and animal tallow are both used, and the finished acid is chemically identical either way — so the label cannot tell you which it was.

  • Vegan status depends on the source
  • Vegetarian status depends on the source
  • May raise a halal question
  • May raise a kosher question

This is not an omission. What this additive is made from is not fixed — depending on the manufacturer it may be plant, animal or microbial in origin, nobody is required to say which, and the same product can change source between production runs. Ask the manufacturer if it matters to you; a label cannot answer it.

CAS registry number
57-11-4
InChIKey
QIQXTHQIDYTFRH-UHFFFAOYSA-N
PubChem
CID 5281

Every name it appears under

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

CAS registry number

  • 57-11-4

As it appears in regulation

  • Stearic acid

Other names

  • 1-Heptadecanecarboxylic acid
  • Acidum stearinicul
  • Barolub FTA
  • Century 1210
  • Century 1240
  • Cetylacetic acid
  • Dar-chem 14
  • Emersol 120
  • Emersol 132
  • Emersol 150
  • F18:0
  • FEMA No. 3035
  • Formula 300
  • Glycon DP
  • Glycon S-70
  • Glycon S-80
  • Glycon S-90
  • Glycon TP
  • Groco 54
  • Groco 55
  • Groco 55L
  • Groco 58
  • Groco 59
  • Humko Industrene R
  • HY-Phi 1199
  • HY-Phi 1205
  • HY-Phi 1303
  • HY-Phi 1401
  • Hydrofol 1895
  • Hydrofol Acid 150
  • Hydrofol acid 1655
  • Hydrofol acid 1855
  • Hystrene 4516
  • Hystrene 5016
  • Hystrene 7018
  • Hystrene 80
  • Hystrene 9718
  • Industrene 5016
  • Industrene 8718
  • Industrene 9018
  • Industrene R
  • Kam 1000
  • Kam 2000
  • Kam 3000
  • n-Octadecanoic acid
  • NAA 173
  • Octadecanoic acid
  • Octadecansaeure
  • octadecoic acid
  • Pearl stearic
  • Stearex Beads
  • Stearic acid
  • Stearic acid 50
  • Stearic acid, pure
  • Stearinsaeure
  • Stearophanic acid
  • Tegostearic 254
  • Tegostearic 255
  • Tegostearic 272
  • Vanicol

Systematic names

  • octadecanoic 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

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

Machine-readable:/api/v1/additives/stearic-acid.json