Food additive databasegum base, glazing agentChecked 2026-10-02
Shellac Wax シェラックロウ
Existing food additiveNot on the EU additive list
- Purpose
- gum base, glazing agent
- On the label
- “ガムベース（一括名）” (gum base (group name)), “光沢剤（一括名）” (glazing agent (group name)), “シェラックロウ” (shellac wax), “セラックロウ” (shellac wax)
- Name in the List of Existing Food Additives
- シェラックロウ (No. 140)
- Source and production
- Obtained from the secretions of the lac insect, with wax components as the main component.
In Japan
- Obtained from the secretions of an insect called the lac insect, with wax components as the main component (Japanese Standards of Food Additives). On the List of Existing Food Additives, its purposes are gum base and glazing agent. There are no standards for use.
- When used as a gum base or glazing agent, it can be written by the respective group name. Another name is “セラックロウ” (shellac wax). The resin component “シェラック” (shellac) is a separate item.
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.
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」別添 添加物関係（簡略名・用途名併記・一括名・栄養強化の範囲、既存添加物名簿収載品目リスト） (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.