Talc

E number E553bINS 553(iii)CAS 14807-96-6

Used as a thickener — Codex also lists it as anticaking agent, glazing agent.

Talc is an anticaking and glazing agent used in some confectionery, rice polishing and chewing gum. Its food use is far smaller than its industrial and cosmetic use.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Talc by jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction this site covers is listed, including those where the substance does not appear.
JurisdictionStatusScope and limitsCitation
United StatesFood and Drug AdministrationNot listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited.
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFAPermitted, with conditions

6 food categories

highest permitted level 10,000 mg/kg

Show every food category
  • 01.5.1 Milk powder and cream powder (plain) — GMP
  • 01.6.1 Unripened cheese — GMP
  • 01.6.2.1 Ripened cheese, includes rind — GMP
  • 01.8.2 Dried whey and whey products, excluding whey cheeses — 10,000 mg/kg
  • 12.1.2 Salt substitutes — GMP
  • 12.2.1 Herbs and spices — GMP
CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 553(iii)and 6 further provisionsretrieved 2026-09-07

What it is made from

Mined and milled from talc rock. Food-grade specifications limit asbestos-form minerals, which can occur alongside talc in some deposits.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian
CAS registry number
14807-96-6
InChIKey
QLQXSZZVUVMFHZ-UHFFFAOYSA-L
PubChem
CID 165411828

Every name it appears under

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

E number

  • E553b

INS number

  • 553(iii)

CAS registry number

  • 14807-96-6

Other names

  • 7SEV7J4R1U
  • Agalite
  • Asbestine
  • Desertalc 57
  • E 553b
  • E-553(III)
  • Emtal 596
  • Fibrene C 400
  • French chalk
  • Health Smart Baby
  • Huashifen
  • Hydrous magnesium silicate
  • INS NO.553(III)
  • INS-553(III)
  • Mistron 2SC
  • Mistron frost P
  • Mistron RCS
  • Mistron Star
  • Mistron super frost
  • Mistron vapor
  • Natures Choice Baby
  • Nekvnro Wart Remover Patch
  • Potstone
  • Pulvis talci
  • Purified talc
  • Sclerosol
  • Sclerosol Intrapleural Aerosol
  • Steatite talc
  • Steawhite
  • Sterile Talc
  • Sterile Talc Powder
  • STERITALC
  • Steritalc 2g
  • Steritalc 3g
  • Steritalc 4g
  • Supreme dense
  • TALC
  • Talc (containing asbestos)
  • Talc (containing no asbestos and less than 1% quartz)
  • Talc (containing no asbestos)
  • Talc (JP17/USP)
  • TALC (Mg3H2(SiO3)4)
  • TALC (NOT CONTAINING ASBESTOS FIBERS)
  • Talc (not containing asbestos)
  • Talc (silica and fibre free)
  • Talc powder
  • Talcum
  • Talcum Powder
  • Wart Remover Patch

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

  • 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/talc.json