E-numbers / Other additives / E1000
also: cholalic acid · ox bile acid
A bile acid produced naturally in the liver. Not a permitted food additive in the UK or EU and not found in UK food products.
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This is not a permitted food additive in the UK, so you will not normally find it on a UK label.
Why it’s worth knowing. This is not a permitted food additive in the UK, so you will not normally find it on a UK label.
Cholic acid is a primary bile acid synthesised in the liver from cholesterol. It is a naturally occurring compound in the human body that forms part of bile, the fluid that helps digest dietary fats. Its E-number code (E1000) appears in some historical or reference databases cataloguing bile acids as potential emulsifiers, but it has never been authorised as a food additive under UK or EU food law.
As a bile acid, cholic acid acts as a biological emulsifier in the gut, breaking up fat globules so that digestive enzymes can act on them. This same surfactant property is why it was considered as a potential food emulsifier, but it has not been approved for that use in food. Its main licensed use is pharmaceutical: oral cholic acid has been used as a medicine to treat rare congenital bile acid synthesis disorders, though the EU marketing authorisation was withdrawn in 2020.
E1000 is not authorised for use in UK or EU food products and should not appear as an ingredient on UK food labels. If cholic acid ever appeared on a UK food label, it would be listed by name or as E1000, but this is not a scenario that arises in lawfully produced UK food.
The UK Food Standards Agency's register of approved additives and E numbers does not include E1000 (cholic acid). EU Regulation 1333/2008, which covers Annex II (food additives permitted in food) and Annex III (additives permitted for use in other food additives, enzymes and flavourings), likewise does not authorise cholic acid for use in food in any of these roles. An E-number code exists in some reference databases, but no approval has ever been granted under UK or EU food law.
Cholic acid (E1000) does not appear on the UK FSA's approved additives and E numbers list, meaning it is not a permitted food additive in Great Britain.
Outside food, oral cholic acid was a licensed medicine (brand name Kolbam in the EU/UK) used to treat rare congenital bile acid synthesis defects in children and adults. In this context it replaced bile acids that patients cannot produce, improving fat and fat-soluble vitamin absorption. The European Medicines Agency granted Kolbam a marketing authorisation in April 2014; that authorisation was withdrawn in July 2020 at the marketing authorisation holder's request for commercial reasons. This was a specialist clinical use under medical supervision and is entirely separate from any food additive application.
Cholic acid (Kolbam) received European Medicines Agency (EMA) marketing authorisation for the treatment of bile acid synthesis disorders due to single enzyme defects. The authorisation was later withdrawn in July 2020.
Bile acids, including cholic acid, have effects beyond fat digestion. They act as signalling molecules through receptors such as FXR and TGR5, influencing cholesterol metabolism, blood glucose regulation, and gut microbiome composition. These are normal physiological functions of endogenous bile acids and are not food-additive concerns, since cholic acid is not used in food.
Primary bile acids including cholic acid act as signalling molecules that regulate lipid, glucose, and energy metabolism via nuclear and membrane receptors.
As E1000 is not permitted in UK or EU food products, there is no routine dietary exposure to avoid. People managing rare bile acid disorders who are or have been prescribed cholic acid as a medicine should follow their clinician's guidance.
E1000 appears in some E-number reference lists and third-party food additive databases, which can give the impression it is a food ingredient to watch for on labels. It is not. Cholic acid has no authorisation under UK or EU food law and is absent from the FSA's approved-additives register. Encountering it on a food label in a UK product would be a labelling irregularity. The only context in which people encounter cholic acid intentionally is as a prescription medicine for rare liver conditions.
Cholic acid was never authorised as a food additive in the UK or EU, so it is not permitted for use in food. It does not appear on the UK FSA's approved additives register. It would be more accurate to say it was never approved rather than actively banned.
Some E-number reference databases and third-party lists include codes that were catalogued or considered at various points but never granted full legal authorisation. E1000 is one of these. The operative legal text (UK FSA register and EU Regulation 1333/2008) is the authoritative source, not third-party E-number databases.
No UK or EU food products are authorised to contain E1000 (cholic acid) as a food additive. It should not appear on the ingredients list of any lawfully sold UK food product.
Cholic acid in its pharmaceutical form is typically synthesised from animal-derived sources (bovine bile). As a food additive it is not relevant because it is not authorised for use in food.
Last reviewed: 20 June 2026
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