Food additive databasethickener / stabilizer, processing agentChecked 2026-10-02
Chitosan キトサン
Existing food additiveNot on the EU additive list
- Purpose
- thickener / stabilizer, processing agent
- On the label
- “増粘剤（キトサン）” (thickener (chitosan)), “安定剤（キトサン）” (stabilizer (chitosan)), “キトサン” (chitosan), “増粘多糖類” (thickening polysaccharides) (when two or more polysaccharides classed as thickening stabilizers are used)
- Name in the List of Existing Food Additives
- キトサン (No. 82)
- Source and production
- Obtained by deacetylating chitin with a warm to hot aqueous sodium hydroxide solution. It consists of polymers of D-glucosamine.
In Japan
- A polysaccharide obtained by deacetylating chitin, used as a thickening stabilizer and a processing agent. There are no standards for use.
- When used as a thickener, stabilizer, or gelling agent, it is written together with the purpose name, as in “増粘剤（キトサン）” (thickener (chitosan)). When two or more polysaccharides classed as thickening stabilizers are used, they can be labeled together as “増粘多糖類” (thickening polysaccharides) (“食品表示基準について” (Notes on the Food Labeling Standards)).
Japan's standards for use
There are no standards for use that limit which foods or how much (the general standards for all additives still apply).
This is a summary of the standards for use. See the source list for the exact conditions.
In the EU
- It is not on the EU list of food additives (Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II), so it cannot be used as a food additive in the EU.
When it is labeled under a shared name
Chitosan may be declared on the label in the same way as “増粘剤・安定剤・ゲル化剤”. See Thickener / stabilizer / gelling agent for details.
Sources
- List of Existing Food Additives — Japan Food Chemical Research Foundation (Japanese)
- Standards for use and storage of each additive — Japan Food Chemical Research Foundation (Japanese)
- EU food additive database (Japanese translation) — MAFF (Japanese)
- Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives — EUR-Lex
- 消費者庁「食品表示基準について」本体（添加物の物質名・簡略名・増粘多糖類・用途名・加工助剤・栄養強化） (Japanese)
- 食品表示基準（平成27年内閣府令第10号）第3条（「色」「増粘」の文字を含む場合の用途名の省略、加工助剤・栄養強化の表示免除）（e-Gov 法令検索） (Japanese)
Checked 2026-10-02. Rules and evaluations change over time. This page is a translation of our Japanese page; if they differ, the Japanese page is the reference.
This page lists facts stated in laws and in evaluations by public bodies; it is not a safety verdict. Additives used in Japan are approved by the government, which sets the foods and amounts they can be used in. The ADI is a guide to the amount that is considered safe to take every day over a lifetime.