Food additive databasethickener / stabilizer, processing agentChecked 2026-10-02
Pullulan プルラン
Existing food additivePermitted in the EU (E1204)
- Purpose
- thickener / stabilizer, processing agent
- On the label
- “増粘剤（プルラン）” (thickener (pullulan)), “安定剤（プルラン）” (stabilizer (pullulan)), “プルラン” (pullulan), “増粘多糖類” (thickening polysaccharides; used when two or more thickener/stabilizer polysaccharides are used)
- Name in the List of Existing Food Additives
- プルラン (No. 246)
- Source and production
- A polysaccharide separated from a culture of a filamentous fungus (Aureobasidium pullulans). The component is pullulan.
In Japan
- A polysaccharide obtained from a filamentous fungus culture, used as a thickener/stabilizer and as a processing agent. There are no standards for use.
- When used as a thickener, stabilizer, gelling agent, or paste, it is written together with the purpose name, as in “増粘剤（プルラン）” (thickener (pullulan)). When two or more thickener/stabilizer polysaccharides are used, they can be grouped as “増粘多糖類” (thickening polysaccharides), and since this contains the characters “増粘” (thickening), the purpose name can be omitted for thickening purposes (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 on the EU list of food additives (Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II) as E1204.
- In the EU, the foods it can be used in are limited to food supplements in capsule and tablet form and to film-form breath-freshening confectionery (Annex II, Part E). Japan has no limits on the foods it can be used in.
- In its 2025 re-evaluation, the EFSA FAF Panel concluded that there was no need to set a numerical ADI.
When it is labeled under a shared name
Pullulan 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
- 第10版食品添加物公定書（2024年、厚生労働省・消費者庁）成分規格・保存基準各条の定義 (Japanese)
- 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)
- Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 統合版（2026-08-18）附属書II（EUR-Lex） (Japanese)
- EFSA FAF Panel (2025) Re-evaluation of pullulan (E 1204) as a food additive and new application for its extension of use. EFSA Journal 23:e9267 (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.