What is Triacetin used for in food?

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

Where is Triacetin permitted?

Of the seven regulators this site reads, Australia and New Zealand, Canada, the EU, Great Britain, South Korea, 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.

It depends on the source, and a label will not tell you. Triacetin 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.

Triacetin

Q: What is E 1518?

E 1518 is Triacetin. Triacetin is a solvent, carrier and humectant, used to hold flavourings in solution and to keep chewing gum base soft.

102-76-1 · 1,2,3-Propanetriol, 1,2,3-triacetate · 1,2,3-Propanetriol, triacetate · 1,2,3-Propanetriyl triacetate · 1,2,3-triacetoxypropane · 1,2,3-triacetyl-sn-glycerol · 1,2,3-Triacetylglycerol · 1,3-diacetyloxypropan-2-yl acetate · 2,3-diacetyloxypropyl acetate · 2-(Acetyloxy)-1-[(acetyloxy)methyl]ethyl acetate · 2-acetyloxy-1-(acetyloxymethyl)ethyl acetate · Acetic, 1,2,3-propanetriyl ester · Acetin, tri- · Blekin · BRN 1792353 · CAS-102-76-1 · CCRIS 9355 · EASTMAN Triacetin · Enzacetin · Enzactin · ENZACTIN (TN) · Estol 1581 · Euzactin · FEMA No. 2007 · FEMA Number 2007 · Fungacet · Fungacetin · Glycerin triacetate · Glycerine triacetate · Glycerol triacetate · Glyceroli Triacetas · Glyceryl triacetate · Glyceryltriacetate · Glyped · HSDB 585 · Ins no.1518 · Kesscoflex TRA · Kodaflex triacetin · Motisil · propane-1,2,3-triyl triacetate · tri-acetin · triacetin · TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE) · Triacetin (USP/INN) · Triacetin, 99% · Triacetin, CP · Triacetin, FCC · Triacetin, USP · Triacetina · Triacetine · Triacetinum · Triacetyl glycerin · Triacetyl glycerine · Triacetyl glycerol · Triacetyl-glycerol · Triacetylglycerol · Ujostabil · Vanay · XHX3C3X673 · E1518 · Glyceryl triacetate · Glyceryl triacetate (triacetin) · Triacetin · GLICERIL TRIACETAT · Gliceril triacetat (triacetin) · GLICERIL-TRIACETÁT · Gliceril-triacetát (triacetin) · GLICERILTRIACETAT · gliceriltriacetat (triacetin) · GLICERILTRIACETATAS · Gliceriltriacetatas (triacetinas) · Gliceriltriacetāts (triacetīns) · GLICERĪNA TRIACETĀTS · GLYCERINTRIACETAT · Glycerintriacetat (Triacetin) · GLYCERYL TRIACETATE · Glyceryl triacetate (triacetin) · GLYCERYL-TRIACETÁT · GLYCERYLTRIACETAAT · Glyceryltriacetaat (triacetine) · GLYCERYLTRIACETAT · Glyceryltriacetát (triacetin) · GLYSEROLITRIASETAATTI · Glyseryylitriasetaatti (triasetiini) · GLÜTSERÜÜLTRIATSETAAT · Glütserüültriatsetaat (triatsetiin) · TRIACETAT DE GLICERIL · Triacetat de glicerină (triacetină) · TRIACETATO DE GLICERILO · Triacetato de glicerilo (triacetina) · TRIACETATO DI GLICERILE · Triacetato di glicerile (triacetina) · Triacetylglycerol (triacetín) · TRIACÉTATE DE GLYCÉRYLE · Triacétate de glycéryle (triacétine) · TRIAĊETAT TAL-GLIĊERIL · Triaċitat tal-gliċeril (triaċetin) · TRIOCTAN GLICEROLU · Trioctan glicerolu (triacetyna) · Τριακετίνη (τριγλυκερίδιο του οξικού οξέος) · ГЛИЦЕРИЛ ТРИАЦЕТАТ · Глицерил триацетат (триацетин)

E number E1518CAS 102-76-1

Listed as a humectant, a carrier and a solvent by Codex, the US and Canada.

Listed as humectants (US, Codex) · carriers (CA, Codex) · solvents and vehicles (CA, US) · emulsifiers (Codex) · glazing and surface-finishing agents (US) · flavouring agents and adjuvants (US) · formulation aids (US) · processing aids (US)

United States: Humectant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
United States: Humectants — 21 CFR 184.1901, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(16)
Codex Alimentarius: Humectant — CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 1518
Canada: Carrier solvent — Health Canada, List of Permitted Solvents (List 15)
Codex Alimentarius: Carrier — CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 1518
Canada: Carrier solvent — Health Canada, List of Permitted Solvents (List 15)
United States: Solvent or vehicle — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
United States: Solvents and vehicles — 21 CFR 184.1901, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(27)
Codex Alimentarius: Emulsifier — CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 1518
United States: Surface-finishing agent — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
United States: Flavoring agent or adjuvant — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
United States: Flavoring agents and adjuvants — 21 CFR 184.1901, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(12)
United States: Formulation aid — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
United States: Formulation aids — 21 CFR 184.1901, citing 21 CFR 170.3(o)(14)
United States: Processing aid — FDA, Substances Added to Food: TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)

Structure from PubChem CID 5541 (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.

Triacetin is a solvent, carrier and humectant, used to hold flavourings in solution and to keep chewing gum base soft.

Where it is and isn’t permitted

Status of Triacetin 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	Permitted, with conditions	54 food categories no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice) Show every food category 0 Preparations of food additives — GMP 1.1.1 Liquid milk (including buttermilk) — GMPOnly UHT goats milk. 1.1.2 Liquid milk products and flavoured liquid milk — GMP 1.2.2 Fermented milk products and rennetted milk products — GMP 1.3 Condensed milk and evaporated milk — GMP 1.4.1 Cream, reduced cream and light cream — GMPOnly UHT creams and creams receiving equivalent or greater heat treatments. 1.4.2 Cream products (flavoured, whipped, thickened, sour cream etc) — GMP 1.5 Dried milk, milk powder, cream powder — GMP 1.6 Cheese and cheese products — GMP 10.2 Liquid egg products — GMP 10.3 Frozen egg products — GMP 10.4 Dried or heat coagulated egg products — GMP 11.1.1 Rainbow sugar — GMP 11.3.1 Dried honey — GMP 11.4 Tabletop sweeteners — GMP 12.1.2 Reduced sodium salt mixture — GMP 12.1.3 Salt substitute — GMP 12.5 Yeast and yeast products — GMP 12.6 Vegetable protein products — GMP 13.3 Formulated meal replacements and formulated supplementary foods — GMP 13.4 Formulated supplementary sports foods — GMP 13.5 Food for special medical purposes — GMP 14.1.1.2 Carbonated, mineralised and soda waters — GMP 14.1.2.1 Fruit and vegetable juices — GMPFor juice separated by other than mechanical means only. 14.1.2.2 Fruit and vegetable juice products — GMP 14.1.3 Water based flavoured drinks — GMP 14.1.4 Formulated Beverages — GMP 14.1.5 Coffee, coffee substitutes, tea, herbal infusions and similar products — GMP 14.2.3 Wine based drinks and reduced alcohol wines — GMP 14.2.4.1 Fruit wine products and vegetable wine products — GMP 14.2.5 Spirits and liqueurs — GMP 14.3 Alcoholic beverages not included in item 14.2 — GMP 2.1 Edible oils essentially free of water — GMP 2.2.1.2 Butter products — GMP 2.2.1.3 Margarine and similar products — GMP 2.2.2 Oil emulsions (<80% oil) — GMP 20 Foods not included in items 0 to 14 — GMP 3 Ice cream and edible ices — GMP 4.1.3 Fruits and vegetables that are peeled, cut, or both peeled and cut — GMP 4.3 Processed fruits and vegetables — GMP 5.1 Chocolate and cocoa products — GMP 5.2 Sugar confectionery — GMP 5.4 Icings and frostings — GMP 6.3 Processed cereal and meal products — GMP 6.4 Flour products (including noodles and pasta) — GMP 7 Breads and bakery products — GMP 8.2 Processed meat, poultry and game products in whole cuts or pieces — GMP 8.3 Processed comminuted meat, poultry and game products, other than products listed in item 8.3.2 — GMP 8.3.2 Sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat — GMP 8.4 Edible casings — GMP 8.5 Animal protein products — GMP 9.2 Processed fish and fish products — GMP 9.3 Semi preserved fish and fish products — GMP 9.4 Fully preserved fish including canned fish products — GMP	Food Standards Code, Schedule 15, S15—5and 53 further provisionsretrieved 2026-10-17
CanadaHealth Canada	Permitted	no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice) 3 permitted uses Show every permitted use In: Cake mixes. Purpose: Wetting Agent. Limit: Good Manufacturing Practice. Amendment notices: M-FAA-25-06. — Health Canada, List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Purposes of Use (List 8), item G.7 In: (Naming the flavour) flavour. Purpose: Carrier solvent. Limit: Good Manufacturing Practice. — Health Canada, List of Permitted Solvents (List 15), item G.3(a) In: Unstandardized flavouring preparations. Purpose: Carrier solvent. Limit: Good Manufacturing Practice. — Health Canada, List of Permitted Solvents (List 15), item G.3(b)	Health Canadaand 2 further provisionsretrieved 2026-10-17
European UnionEuropean Commission / EFSA	Permitted	1 food category quantum satis.	Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II, as amended by (EU) No 1129/2011retrieved 2026-10-18
Great BritainFood Standards Agency / Food Standards Scotland	Permitted	1 food category quantum satis.	Assimilated Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II (as at 28 June 2024)retrieved 2026-10-18
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	Permitted, with conditions	Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 1. … Designated food additive: Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, Part III, 1. 일반식품첨가물 (general food additives), 트리아세틴 (“Triacetin”, the English the Code prints beside it). Main use (주용도) of 트리아세틴: 유화제, 껌기초제. Standard for use (사용기준) of 트리아세틴: (1) [to be used under the general standard for use in II. 2. 1), the minimum amount that achieves the technical effect, with no limit set for this additive in particular] “II. 2. 1)의 규정에 따라 사용하여야 한다.” The Korean is the standard as published. There is no official English translation of the current Code (the English version on MFDS’s website is the 2020 edition and has no legal effect); the English in square brackets is this site’s description of what each sentence does, not a translation of the foods or the levels. Compositional specifications (Part IV) are not imported, nor are the general standards in Part II, which apply to every additive.	Standards and Specifications for Food Additives (식품첨가물의 기준 및 규격), MFDS Notification, Part III (Standards for use, by item)retrieved 2026-10-18
United StatesFood and Drug Administration	Permitted		21 CFR 184.1901retrieved 2026-10-17
Codex AlimentariusCodex Alimentarius Commission / JECFA	Permitted	no numerical limit (good manufacturing practice)	CXS 192-1995 Table Three, INS 1518retrieved 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.

Australia and New Zealand	—	54 GMP
Canada	—	3 GMP
European Union	—	1 quantum satis
Great Britain	—	1 quantum satis
South Korea	—	1 no quantity stated
United States	—	1 no quantity stated
Codex Alimentarius	—	1 GMP

No regulator sets a figure for Triacetin. That is not an absence of control: where the listing says quantum satis or good manufacturing practice, the quantity is limited to what the effect requires.

What it is made from

Made by reacting glycerol with acetic acid. The glycerol may be plant or animal in origin.

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: 102-76-1
InChIKey: URAYPUMNDPQOKB-UHFFFAOYSA-N
PubChem: CID 5541

The two specifications, compared

The European Union sets identity and purity by regulation; JECFA publishes its own through FAO, advisory until a country adopts it. Both documents are below in full. These are the parameters each puts a number on.

Parameter	European Union	JECFA
Assay	no less than 98 %	no less than 98.5 %
Sulphated ash	no more than 0.02 %	no more than 0.02 %
Lead	no more than 2 mg/kg	no more than 2 mg/kg
Arsenic	no more than 3 mg/kg	—

One parameter differs between the two documents. A difference is not a disagreement about safety: the two are revised on their own cycles, and an assay or a drying loss can be measured against a different preparation of the substance, which is why only the contaminant ceilings are marked. Within the EU the EU's figure is the one that binds.

How the EU defines it

The legal specification an additive must meet to be sold as this E number in the EU — what it is, how it may be made, and the purity it must reach. From Commission Regulation (EU) No 231/2012.

E 1518 Glyceryl triacetate

Synonyms: Triacetin

Assay, identification and purity criteria

Description and assay

Einecs: 203-051-9
Chemical name: Glyceryl triacetate
Chemical formula: C₉H₁₄O₆
Molecular weight: 218,21
Assay: Content not less than 98,0 %
Description: Colourless, somewhat oily liquid having a slightly fatty odour

Identification

Test for acetate: Passes test
Test for glycerol: Passes test
Refractive index: [n]D ²⁵ between 1,429 and 1,431
Specific gravity (25 °C/25 °C): Between 1,154 and 1,158
Boiling range: Between 258 and 270 °C

Purity criteria

Water content: Not more than 0,2 % (Karl Fischer method)
Sulphated ash: Not more than 0,02 % (as citric acid)
Arsenic: Not more than 3 mg/kg
Lead: Not more than 2 mg/kg

Commission Regulation (EU) No 231/2012, Annex, E 1518

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 1518 Triacetin

Synonyms: Glyceryl triacetate, INS No. 1518 Glyceryl triacetate

Assay, identification and purity criteria

Description and assay

Specification history: Prepared at the 46th JECFA (1996), published in FNP 52 Add 4 (1996) superseding specifications prepared at the 19th JECFA (1975), published in NMRS 55B (1976) and in FNP 52 (1992). Metals and arsenic specifications revised at the 63rd JECFA (2004). An ADI 'not specified' was established at the 19th JECFA (1975)
Chemical names: Glyceryl triacetate
C.A.S. number: 102-76-1
Chemical formula: C 9 H 14 O 6
Formula weight: 218.21
Assay: Not less than 98.5% on the anhydrous basis
DESCRIPTION: Colourless, somewhat oily liquid having a slight, fatty odour
FUNCTIONAL USES: Humectant, solvent
METHOD OF ASSAY: Transfer about 1 g of the sample, accurately weighed, into a suitable pressure bottle, add 25 ml of 1N potassium hydroxide and 15 ml of isopropanol, stopper the bottle, and wrap securely in a canvas bag. Heat in a water bath maintained at 98±2 o for 1 h, allowing the water in the bath to just cover the liquid in the bottle. Remove the bottle from the bath, cool in ai r to room temperature, then loosen the bag, uncap the bottle to release any pressure, and remove the bag. Add 6 to 8 drops of phenolphthalein TS, and titrate the excess alkali with 0.5N sulfuric acid just to the disappearance of the pink colour. Perform a blank determination. Each ml of 0.5N sulfuric acid is equivalent to 36.37 mg of C 9 H 14 O 6 .

Identification

Solubility (Vol. 4): Sparingly soluble in water, soluble in ethanol
Test for glycerol: Heat a few drops in a test tube with about 0.5 g of potassium bisulfate. Pungent vapours of acrolein are evolved
Test for acetate (Vol. 4): Passes test To be performed on the solution resulting from the assay

Purity criteria

Water (Vol. 4): Not more than 1.0% (Karl Fischer Method)
Refractive index (Vol. 4): 1.429 - 1.431 at 25 o
Specific gravity (Vol. 4): d (25, 25): 1.154 - 1.158
Distillation range (Vol. 4): 258 - 270 o
Sulfated ash (Vol. 4): Not more than 0.02% Test 5 g of the sample (Method II)
Acidity: Accurately weigh a sample of 25 g, dilute with 50 ml of neutralized ethanol, and add 5 drops of phenolphthalein TS. Not more than 1 ml of 0.02N sodium hydroxide is required to produce a pink colour.
Unsaturated compounds: To 10 ml of the sample in a glass-stoppered tube add dropwise a 1 in 100 solution of bromine in carbon tetrachloride until a permanent yellow colour is produced. No turbidity or precipitate appears after 18 h in the dark.
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)

Authorised in other additives, enzymes, flavourings and nutrients

These authorisations are not for use in food. They let this substance be used inside another additive, a food enzyme, a flavouring or a nutrient preparation — often as a carrier — and it reaches food only as part of that product. Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008.

Part	May be used in	Maximum level	Citation
Annex III, Part 1: Carriers in food additives	All food additivesNote (1): Maximum level from all sources in foodstuffs 3 000 mg/kg (individually or in combination with E 1505, E 1517 and E 1518). In the case of beverages, with the exception of cream liqueurs, the maximum level of E 1520 shall be 1 000 mg/l from all sources.	quantum satis	Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex III, Part 1
Annex III, Part 4: Food additives including carriers in food flavourings	All flavourings	3 000 mg/kg from all sources in foodstuffs as consumed or as reconstituted according to the instructions of the manufacturer; individually or in combination. In the case of beverages, with the exception of cream liqueurs, the maximum level of E 1520 shall be 1 000 mg/l from all sources	Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex III, Part 4
Annex III, Part 5, Section A: Food additives added in nutrients except in nutrients intended to be used in foodstuffs listed in Part E, point 01.10, of Annex II and foodstuffs for infants and young children listed in Part E, point 13.1, of Annex II	All nutrientsCan be used as a carrier: Yes, only as a carrier Note (1): Maximum level for E 1518 and E 1520 from all sources in foodstuffs 3 000 mg/kg (individually or in combination with E 1505 and E 1517). In the case of beverages, with the exception of cream liqueurs, the maximum level of E 1520 shall be 1 000 mg/l from all sources.	See note (1)	Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex III, Part 5, Section A

Every name it appears under

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

E number

E1518

CAS registry number

102-76-1

As it appears in regulation

Glyceryl triacetate
Glyceryl triacetate (triacetin)
Triacetin

Other names

1,2,3-Propanetriol, 1,2,3-triacetate
1,2,3-Propanetriol, triacetate
1,2,3-Propanetriyl triacetate
1,2,3-triacetoxypropane
1,2,3-triacetyl-sn-glycerol
1,2,3-Triacetylglycerol
1,3-diacetyloxypropan-2-yl acetate
2,3-diacetyloxypropyl acetate
2-(Acetyloxy)-1-[(acetyloxy)methyl]ethyl acetate
2-acetyloxy-1-(acetyloxymethyl)ethyl acetate
Acetic, 1,2,3-propanetriyl ester
Acetin, tri-
Blekin
BRN 1792353
CAS-102-76-1
CCRIS 9355
EASTMAN Triacetin
Enzacetin
Enzactin
ENZACTIN (TN)
Estol 1581
Euzactin
FEMA No. 2007
FEMA Number 2007
Fungacet
Fungacetin
Glycerin triacetate
Glycerine triacetate
Glycerol triacetate
Glyceroli Triacetas
Glyceryl triacetate
Glyceryltriacetate
Glyped
HSDB 585
Ins no.1518
Kesscoflex TRA
Kodaflex triacetin
Motisil
propane-1,2,3-triyl triacetate
tri-acetin
triacetin
TRIACETIN (GLYCEROL TRIACETATE)
Triacetin (USP/INN)
Triacetin, 99%
Triacetin, CP
Triacetin, FCC
Triacetin, USP
Triacetina
Triacetine
Triacetinum
Triacetyl glycerin
Triacetyl glycerine
Triacetyl glycerol
Triacetyl-glycerol
Triacetylglycerol
Ujostabil
Vanay
XHX3C3X673

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	not specified	—	JECFA	2002

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 E 1518?: E 1518 is Triacetin. Triacetin is a solvent, carrier and humectant, used to hold flavourings in solution and to keep chewing gum base soft.
What is Triacetin used for in food?: It is listed as a humectant, a carrier and a solvent — the role Codex, the US and Canada assign it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
Where is Triacetin permitted?: Of the seven regulators this site reads, Australia and New Zealand, Canada, the EU, Great Britain, South Korea, 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 Triacetin vegan?: It depends on the source, and a label will not tell you. Triacetin 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

anz retrieved 2026-10-17
ca retrieved 2026-10-17
eu retrieved 2026-10-18
gb retrieved 2026-10-18
kr retrieved 2026-10-18
ecfr retrieved 2026-10-17
gsfa retrieved 2026-09-07
euspecs retrieved 2026-10-18
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 Triacetin:Atom feed — regulatory events, and any change the weekly refresh detects in its provisions.