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E1505Glazing agentLow concern
Triethyl Citrate
In plain words
The short version
An ester of citric acid and ethanol — foam stabilizer for egg-white whipping and a film-forming carrier.
Why it's green
It's widely considered safe at the amounts used in food, so we mark it green. The Safety section below has the details.
Safety profile
ADI of 0–20 mg/kg body weight. Hydrolyzed in digestion to citric acid and ethanol — both normal dietary components.
The detail
Manufactured by esterifying citric acid with ethanol. A natural metabolite at trace levels in many fruits and fermented foods.
The standard foam stabilizer in dried egg-white powder — added at 0.1–0.25% to preserve whipping function through spray drying. Also a film-forming plasticizer in encapsulated flavors and pharmaceutical coatings, and a carrier solvent in chewing gum bases.
Colorless, odorless, slightly viscous liquid. Practically insoluble in water; miscible with most organic solvents and oils.
Permitted globally with maximum-use limits per category.
Sources
- WHO JECFA database — Triethyl citrate (INS 1505) — WHO / FAO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), 1999. ADI of 0–20 mg/kg body weight
- 21 CFR 184.1911 — Triethyl citrate (affirmed GRAS) — U.S. FDA / eCFR, 1994. US status: GRAS, used at levels set by good manufacturing practice
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 1129/2011 — Union list of food additives (Annex II to Reg. 1333/2008) — European Union (EUR-Lex), 2011. EU use in dried egg white (foam stabiliser use)
Checked against these sources on .
Educational information only. Not medical, dietary or veterinary advice. Spotted an error? Tell us.