Food additive databaseseasoning, nutrient (fortification)Checked 2026-10-02
L-Serine L-セリン
Existing food additiveNot on the EU additive list
- Purpose
- seasoning, nutrient (fortification)
- On the label
- “調味料（アミノ酸）” (seasoning (amino acids)), “調味料（アミノ酸等）” (seasoning (amino acids, etc.)), “セリン” (serine), “L-セリン” (L-serine)
- Name in the List of Existing Food Additives
- L-セリン (No. 166)
- Source and production
- Slightly sweet-tasting white crystals or crystalline powder containing 98.0–102.0% L-serine (dried basis) (component specifications). The source and manufacturing method are not given in the list of listed items.
In Japan
- One of the amino acids. Its purposes on the List of Existing Food Additives (list of listed items) are seasoning and fortifier.
- No standards for use (permitted foods and upper limits) have been set.
- When used for seasoning, it can be labeled with the group name “調味料（アミノ酸）” (seasoning (amino acids)). The simplified name by substance name is “セリン” (serine). When used for nutrient fortification, labeling is in principle exempt.
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
L-Serine may be declared on the label in the same way as “調味料（アミノ酸等）”. See Seasoning (amino acids etc.) — e.g. MSG 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」別添 添加物関係（既存添加物名簿収載品目リスト・簡略名・一括名の範囲ほか） (Japanese)
- 第10版食品添加物公定書（厚生労働省・消費者庁、2024年）成分規格・保存基準各条 (Japanese)
- 消費者庁「食品表示基準について」本体（添加物の物質名表示・増粘多糖類の簡略名・栄養強化の範囲） (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.
Other substances used as seasoning, nutrient (fortification)
- Monosodium L-Aspartate
- DL-Alanine
- L-Arginine L-Glutamate
- L-Isoleucine
- L-Glutamic Acid
- L-Theanine
- L-Valine
- L-Histidine Monohydrochloride
- L-Phenylalanine
- L-Lysine L-Aspartate
- L-Lysine Monohydrochloride
- L-Lysine L-Glutamate
- L-Asparagine
- L-Alanine
- L-Arginine
- L-Glutamine
- L-Cystine
- L-Tyrosine
- L-Histidine
- L-Hydroxyproline
- L-Proline
- L-Lysine
- L-Leucine