What is Stearyl citrate used for in food?

It is listed as a sequestrant — the role Canada, Codex and the US assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.

Is Stearyl citrate banned in Europe?

No. Stearyl citrate 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 Stearyl citrate permitted?

Of the seven regulators this site reads, Canada, the US and the Codex standard 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 Stearyl citrate vegan?

It depends on the source, and a label will not tell you. Stearyl citrate can be made from plant or animal material, manufacturers are not obliged to say which, and the same product can change between production runs. Anyone who needs to know has to ask the manufacturer.

Stearyl citrate

INS 484CAS 1337-33-3

Listed as a sequestrant by Canada, Codex and the US.

Listed as sequestrants (CA, US, Codex) · antioxidants (US, Codex) · emulsifiers (US, Codex) · surface-active agents (US)

Canada: Sequestering agent — Health Canada, List of Permitted Sequestering Agents (List 12)
United States: Sequestrant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: STEARYL CITRATE
United States: Sequestrants — 21 CFR 184.1851, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(26)
Codex Alimentarius: Sequestrant — CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 484
United States: Antioxidant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: STEARYL CITRATE
United States: Antioxidants — 21 CFR 184.1851, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(3)
Codex Alimentarius: Antioxidant — CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 484
United States: Emulsifier or emulsifier salt — FDA, Substances Added to Food: STEARYL CITRATE
United States: Emulsifiers and emulsifier salts — 21 CFR 184.1851, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(8)
Codex Alimentarius: Emulsifier — CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 484
United States: Surface-active agent — FDA, Substances Added to Food: STEARYL CITRATE
United States: Surface-active agents — 21 CFR 184.1851, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(29)

Structure from PubChem CID 16204528 (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.

Stearyl citrate is a sequestrant and emulsifier used in fats and oils to protect against metal-catalysed rancidity.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Stearyl citrate by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
Jurisdiction	Status	Scope and limits	Citation
Australia and New ZealandFood Standards Australia 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.
CanadaHealth Canada	Permitted, with conditions	In: Calorie-reduced margarine; Margarine. Purpose: Sequestering agent. Limit: If used singly, the amount not to exceed 100 ppm of the fat content. If used in any combination with c … In: Calorie-reduced margarine; Margarine. Purpose: Sequestering agent. Limit: If used singly, the amount not to exceed 100 ppm of the fat content. If used in any combination with citric acid esters of mono- and di-glycerides, monoglyceride citrate or monoisopropyl citrate in accordance with items C.8, M.3 and M.4 of the List of Permitted Preservatives, the total combined amount not to exceed 100 ppm of the fat content.	Health Canada, List of Permitted Sequestering Agents (List 12), item S.11retrieved 2026-10-17
European UnionEuropean Commission / EFSA	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.
Great BritainFood Standards Agency / Food Standards Scotland	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.
JapanConsumer Affairs Agency	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 KoreaMinistry of Food and Drug Safety	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 StatesFood and Drug Administration	Permitted		21 CFR 184.1851retrieved 2026-10-17
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFA	Permitted, with conditions	5 food categories highest permitted level 15,000 mg/kg Show every food category and its notes 02.1.2 Vegetable oils and fats — GMP Note XS19 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Edible Fats and Oils not covered by Individual Standards (CXS 19-1981). Note XS33 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Olive Oils and Olive Pomace Oils (CODEX STAN 33-1981). Note XS210 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Named Vegetable Oils (CXS 210-1999). Note XS325R Excluding products conforming to the Regional Standard for Unrefined Shea Butter (CXS 325R-2017). 02.1.3 Lard, tallow, fish oil, and other animal fats — GMP Note XS19 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Edible Fats and Oils not covered by Individual Standards (CXS 19-1981). Note XS211 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Named Animal Fat (CODEX STAN 211-1999). 02.2.2 Fat spreads, dairy fat spreads and blended spreads — 100 mg/kg Note 15 On the fat or oil basis. Note XS253 Excluding products conforming to the Standard for Dairy Fat Spreads (CXS 253-2006). 05.3 Chewing gum — 15,000 mg/kg 14.1.4 Water-based flavoured drinks, including "sport," “energy,” or "electrolyte" drinks and particulated drinks — 500 mg/kg	CXS 192-1995 Table One, INS 484and 4 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

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.

Canada	—	1 no quantity stated
United States	—	1 no quantity stated
Codex Alimentarius	100 mg/kg – 15,000 mg/kg	3 numeric limit, 2 GMP

What it is made from

Made by reacting citric acid with stearyl alcohol, which may derive from plant or animal fats.

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.

Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.

CAS registry number: 1337-33-3
InChIKey: REVZBRXEBPWDRA-UHFFFAOYSA-L
PubChem: CID 16204528

How JECFA defines it

The international specification for identity and purity, prepared by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and published by FAO. It is a different document from any above, written by a different body and revised on its own cycle; it is advisory, and a country adopts it or does not.

INS 484 Stearyl Citrate

Formed by esterifying citric acid with commercial stearyl alcohol, which consists essentially of n-octadecanol and up to 50% of n-hexadecanol and conforms to the following specifications. The article of commerce can be further specified by saponification value, total content and composition of stearyl alcohol, iodine value, acid value, and citric acid content.

Synonyms: INS No. 484

Assay, identification and purity criteria

Description and assay

Specification history: Prepared at the 17th JECFA (1973), published in FNP 4 (1978) and in FNP 52 (1992). Metals and arsenic specifications revised at the 55th JECFA (2000). An ADI of 0-50 mg/kg bw was established at the 17th JECFA (1973)
Structural formula: (approximate composition) where R 1 , R 2 and R 3 each may be C 18 H 37 (stearyl), C 16 H 33 (palmityl) or H
DESCRIPTION: Cream-coloured unctuous substance
FUNCTIONAL USES: Emulsifier, sequestrant

Identification

Solubility (Vol. 4): Insoluble in water and in cold ethanol. Soluble in hot ethanol
Test for stearyl alcohol: Hydrolyse approximately 2 g of the sample by heating with 50 ml sodium hydroxide TS under reflux for 1 h. Cool and extract the aqueous solution with petroleum ether, evaporate the petroleum ether in an evaporating dish. The residue has a melting range of 43 o to 58 o .
Test for citrate: To 5 ml of the aqueous solution obtained in the Test for stearyl alcohol, add 1 ml of calcium chloride TS and 3 drops of bromothymol blue TS and slightly acidify with dilute hydrochloric acid TS. Add sodium hydroxide TS until the colour changes to a clear blue, then boil the solution for 3 min, agitating it gently during the heating period: a white crystalline precipitate appears which is insoluble in sodium hydroxide TS but is soluble in acetic acid TS. To 10 ml of the aqueous solution obtained in the Test for stearyl alcohol, add 1 ml of mercuric sulfate TS. Heat the mixture to boiling, and add a few drops of potassium permanganate TS: a white precipitate of the acetone dicarboxylic acid salt of mercury is formed.

Purity criteria

Other acids and alcohols: Acids other than citric and alcohols other than those present in commercial stearyl alcohol must not be present
Chloroform insoluble matter: Not more than 0.5% Dissolve about 50.0 g of sample in 400 ml chloroform. Filter the solution through a sintered glass filter of porosity 3 previously weighed to the nearest 0.001 g. Keep the filter warm and wash the residue in the filter with chloroform, then dry at 100 o .
Lead (Vol. 4): Not more than 2 mg/kg Determine using an atomic absorption technique appropriate to the specified level. The selection of sample size and method of sample preparation may be based on the principles of the method described in Volume 4, “Instrumental Methods.”

FAO JECFA Monograph 1 (2006)

Every name it appears under

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

E number

E484

INS number

CAS registry number

1323-66-6
1337-33-3

As it appears in regulation

Stearyl citrate

Other names

1,2,3-Propanetricarboxylic acid, 2-hydroxy-, octadecyl ester
2-hydroxy-2-(2-octadecoxy-2-oxoethyl)butanedioate
INS NO.484
INS-484
monostearyl citrate
MONOSTEARYL CITRATE (II)
RIKEMAL EW 90
RIKESTER EW 90
STEARYL CITRATE
stearyl monocitrate
YWW937R1QR

Hazard reference values

Values set by assessing bodies. A body that has not set a value is not listed here.
Type	Value	Population	Assessed by	Opinion
ADI	50 mg/kg bw/day	—	JECFA	1973

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 INS 484?: INS 484 is Stearyl citrate. Stearyl citrate is a sequestrant and emulsifier used in fats and oils to protect against metal-catalysed rancidity.
What is Stearyl citrate used for in food?: It is listed as a sequestrant — the role Canada, Codex and the US assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
Is Stearyl citrate banned in Europe?: No. Stearyl citrate 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 Stearyl citrate permitted?: Of the seven regulators this site reads, Canada, the US and the Codex standard 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 Stearyl citrate vegan?: It depends on the source, and a label will not tell you. Stearyl citrate can be made from plant or animal material, manufacturers are not obliged to say which, and the same product can change between production runs. Anyone who needs to know has to ask the manufacturer.

Sources for this page

ca retrieved 2026-10-17
ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17
gsfa retrieved 2026-09-07
jecfaspecs retrieved 2026-09-23

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.

Follow changes to Stearyl citrate:Atom feed — regulatory events, and any change the weekly refresh detects in its provisions.