What does Malic acid do?

Used in food as a flavouring agent, acidity regulator.

Moderate concern: no hazard classifications on record.

beauty
cleaning
food
industrial

Malic acid

CAS 6915-15-7 · 40/100 · High conf.

Also registered as 5 other CAS numbers

617-48-1 · 41308-42-3 · 623158-98-5 · 879715-44-3 · 1334703-48-8

Concern score

40/100Moderate concern based on regulatory listings.

High confidence

Malic acid in plain language

What it is: Also known as Hydroxybutanedioic acid · 2-HYDROXYBUTANEDIOIC acid · Dl-malic acid · Hydroxysuccinic acid · Pomalous acid · (±)-malic acid
Show all 35 names
D,l-malic acid · Malate · Malic acid, dl- · (+-)-Hydroxysuccinic acid · (+/-)-malic acid · 2-Hydroxy-succinic acid · 2-Hydroxyethane-1,2-dicarboxylic acid · Deoxytetraric acid · E-296 · E296 · Fda 2018 · Hydroxybutanedioic acid, (+/-)- · Hydroxybutanedioic acid, (±)- · Hydroxybutandisaeure · Ins no. 296 · INS-296 · Kyselina hydroxybutandiova · Kyselina jablecna · Malates · Malicum acidum · Monohydroxybernsteinsaeure · Monohydroxybutanedioic acid · Nanoveson M · Pomalus acid · Succinic acid, hydroxy- · Xeros · alpha-Hydroxysuccinic acid · l-Malic acid · Malic acid (constituent of cranberry liquid preparation)
What it does: Used in food as a flavouring agent, acidity regulator.
Flavouring agent, acidity regulator
Chelating agent
pH adjuster
Fragrance
Flavouring
Is it a concern?: Moderate concern: no hazard classifications on record.

Why it's flagged

EPA CPDat observed this chemical in 560 composition records across product categories including Cleaning and safety, Cleaning products and household care, Laboratory supplies.

The score describes this ingredient's chemical identity — its hazard profile from published classifications and regulatory status — not the safety of any product it appears in.

Regulation

No restrictions found. Malic acid appears in these published regulatory listings.

In marketed US drugs
Inactive ingredient in US drugs

Recorded in these product areas

Found in consumer products
Beauty
Cleaning
Industrial

USFDAinactive ingredient database5 entries
- Route: ORAL; Dosage form: TABLET; Maximum daily exposure: 20 mgSource →
- Route: ORAL; Dosage form: SUSPENSION; Maximum daily exposure: 180 mgSource →
- Route: ORAL; Dosage form: SOLUTION; Maximum daily exposure: 16760 mgSource →
- Route: ORAL; Dosage form: POWDER, FOR SUSPENSION; Maximum daily exposure: 1392 mgSource →
- Route: ORAL; Dosage form: POWDER, FOR SOLUTION; Maximum daily exposure: 1230 mgSource →
EUEFSAEFSA opinion4 entries
- Scientific Opinion on the safety and efficacy of malic acid and a mixture of sodium and calcium malate when used as technological additives for all animal species (EFSA FEEDAP)Source →
- Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in Contact with Food on a request from the Commission related to Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc Malate added for nutritional purposes to food supplements as sources for Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc and to Calcium Malate added for nutritional purposes to foods for particular nutritional uses and foods intended for the general population as source for Calcium (EFSA AFC)Source →
- 22nd list of substances for food contact materials - Scientific Opinion of the Panel on food contact materials, enzymes, flavourings and processing aids (CEF) (EFSA CEF)Source →
- Calcium acetate, calcium pyruvate, calcium succinate, magnesium pyruvate magnesium succinate and potassium malate added for nutritional purposes to food supplements (EFSA ANS)Source →
GLOBALJECFAEvaluatedJECFA evaluation record.
- JECFA evaluation record.Source →
GLOBALJECFANOT SPECIFIEDJECFA evaluation lists ADI NOT SPECIFIED. Functional class: flavouring agent, acidity regulator.
- JECFA evaluation lists ADI NOT SPECIFIED. Functional class: flavouring agent, acidity regulator.Source →
USEPAcommercial use observedEPA CPDat observed this chemical in 560 composition records across product categories including Cleaning and safety, Cleaning products and household care, Laboratory supplies. EPA CPDat classifies this chemical for functional uses including Chelating agent, pH regulating agent, Fragrance.
- EPA CPDat observed this chemical in 560 composition records across product categories including Cleaning and safety, Cleaning products and household care, Laboratory supplies. EPA CPDat classifies this chemical for functional uses including Chelating agent, pH regulating agent, Fragrance.Source →
USFDAlisted in openFDA substanceopenFDA substance registry classifies this ingredient as chemical.
- openFDA substance registry classifies this ingredient as chemical.Source →
USFDAmarketed drug occurrenceFDA NDC lists this ingredient in 26 active drug products and 32 total products.
- FDA NDC lists this ingredient in 26 active drug products and 32 total products.Source →

Expert safety opinions

Independent scientific assessments cited by the records we hold, with the year and link where the record gives one.

JECFA
Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives
- JECFA evaluation record.
  Year not recorded · GLOBAL JECFA listing · Read the source →
- JECFA evaluation lists ADI NOT SPECIFIED. Functional class: flavouring agent, acidity regulator.
  Year not recorded · GLOBAL JECFA listing · Read the source →
EFSA
European Food Safety Authority
- Scientific Opinion on the safety and efficacy of malic acid and a mixture of sodium and calcium malate when used as technological additives for all animal species (EFSA FEEDAP)
  2014 · EU EFSA listing · Read the source →
- Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in Contact with Food on a request from the Commission related to Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc Malate added for nutritional purposes to food supplements as sources for Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc and to Calcium Malate added for nutritional purposes to foods for particular nutritional uses and foods intended for the general population as source for Calcium (EFSA AFC)
  2006 · EU EFSA listing · Read the source →
- 22nd list of substances for food contact materials - Scientific Opinion of the Panel on food contact materials, enzymes, flavourings and processing aids (CEF) (EFSA CEF)
  2009 · EU EFSA listing · Read the source →
- Calcium acetate, calcium pyruvate, calcium succinate, magnesium pyruvate magnesium succinate and potassium malate added for nutritional purposes to food supplements (EFSA ANS)
  2009 · EU EFSA listing · Read the source →

Evidence & sources

No graded research studies for Malic acid yet. This record is compiled from the published data sources below — registries and regulatory listings, not study findings.

9 data sources

Where this comes from

EFSA OpenFoodTox
regulatory · updated 2026-10-04
Open →
EPA Chemical and Products Database
exposure · updated September 2018
Open →
EPA DSSTox Identifiers
chemistry · updated 2025-12-29
Open →
FDA Inactive Ingredient Database
regulatory · updated 2026-01-09
Open →
FDA National Drug Code Directory
regulatory · updated 2029-05-29
Open →
FDA GSRS UNII
registry · updated 2026-02-26
Open →
WHO JECFA Database
regulatory · updated 2026-10-04
Open →
openFDA Substance
registry · updated 2026-05-24
Open →
PubChem Live Enrichment
chemistry · updated 2026-05-17
Open →

Reference links (1)

Openfda substance

codexalimentarius.net

Read →

Suitability

Context-specific fit derived from published classifications and the current ingredient evidence profile.

Food use

Food-use source coverage is present in the current record.

Good fit

The ingredient appears in food-oriented source coverage or allowed-use references, which makes food use easier to support than a context with no domain signal at all.

Fragrance avoidance

Not a strong fit for fragrance avoidance because it carries Fragrance.

Avoid

The ingredient itself is a fragrance-linked signal, so it is better treated as an avoid case when fragrance exposure is the main concern.

Where it has been recorded

How often EPA CPDat has listed Malic acid in a product composition. These are source records, not Greenveil catalog products.

Source records

560

Named organisations

Cleaning and safetyCleaning products and household careLaboratory suppliesPet and animal careIndustrial productsHome maintenance

Typical roles

Flavouring agent, acidity regulatorChelating agentpH adjusterFragranceFlavouring

See products using Malic acid →

Catalog

Found in these products

Their ingredient lists include Malic acid; each product's own rating depends on its whole formula, so it is shown on the product page, not here.

See all 186 →Find products without it →