Calcium phosphates

also: Monocalcium phosphate · Dicalcium phosphate · Tricalcium phosphate · TCP

Calcium phosphate salts that make self-raising flour rise and keep salt flowing. They add to the phosphate in a processed diet, which children can have too much of.

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An ingredient list from the bread and bakery aisle

Flour Blend (Rice, Potato, Tapioca, Maize, Buckwheat), Raising Agents (Mono-Calcium Phosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate), Thickener (Xanthan Gum)

E341

Calcium phosphates

A lot of phosphate from processed food additives is linked to raised blood phosphate, which in healthy people sets off a hormone response that may affect bones and kidneys over time.

VeganVegetarian

964

of the 43,325 UK supermarket foods we checked declare E341 in their ingredients

That is 2.2%, counted by its code or its name.

Only 12% of these labels print “E341”. Most use the name: look for “calcium phosphates”.

Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted

How common it is in UK food, by aisle

Bread and bakery262 products7.1% of 3,682
Cakes, biscuits and desserts228 products6.1% of 3,715
Ready meals and pizza97 products2% of 4,833
Yoghurt, milk and dairy81 products3.6% of 2,273

What calcium phosphates is, what it does and where you will see it

Why it’s worth knowing. A lot of phosphate from processed food additives is linked to raised blood phosphate, which in healthy people sets off a hormone response that may affect bones and kidneys over time. The concern is the total from phosphate additives across the diet, not one serving.

What is it?

E341 covers three calcium phosphate salts: monocalcium phosphate (E341(i)), dicalcium phosphate (E341(ii)) and tricalcium phosphate (E341(iii)). They are minerals made by reacting a calcium compound with phosphoric acid. All three supply calcium and phosphate, which the body needs, but they are added mainly for what they do in the food.

What does it do?

Each form does a different job. Monocalcium phosphate reacts with bicarbonate of soda to make gas, which makes cakes and bread rise. Dicalcium phosphate keeps a food at a steady level of acidity. Tricalcium phosphate is a very powdery form that stops powdered foods clumping. All three can also add calcium when used in larger amounts.

Where you will see it

Baking (self-raising flour, baking powder, bread, cakes, biscuits), dairy (processed cheese, cream and milk powders), table salt and seasoning mixes, supplements and protein powders, breakfast cereals, and some tinned and processed meat. UK labels call it calcium phosphates, calcium dihydrogen phosphate, dicalcium phosphate, tricalcium phosphate or E341.

What the science says

Children can go over the phosphate limit

European reviewers looked at the whole phosphate group (E338 to E341, E343, E450 to E452) in 2019 and set a shared daily limit of 40mg per kg of body weight, measured as phosphorus. They found that intake from all phosphate additives went over it in some groups, particularly children. They found no new hazard beyond the well-known effects of phosphate.

Reviewers found that intake of phosphate additives went over the shared daily limit of 40mg per kg of body weight, measured as phosphorus, in several groups, including children, at high intake.

2019Regulator reviewEFSA Journal 2019, Re-evaluation of phosphoric acid and phosphates (E338-341, E343, E450-452)

Reviewers noted that phosphate from additives is absorbed more easily than phosphate in natural food, so it may have a bigger effect per milligram than the phosphate in meat, dairy or pulses.

2019Regulator reviewEFSA Journal, re-evaluation of phosphate additives group

Phosphate, hormones, bones and kidneys

In people with chronic kidney disease, too much phosphate is well known to speed up kidney damage and raise heart risk. In the general population the concern is less direct: a lot of phosphate raises a hormone called FGF-23 and lowers active vitamin D, which together can affect calcium balance and bone. Most of this research is in people with kidney disease or other high risks, and the evidence in healthy people at normal intakes is weaker.

In a large US community study of people free of heart and kidney disease, higher blood phosphate was linked to more heart disease over the following years. This does not prove cause.

2007ObservationalDhingra et al., Archives of Internal Medicine

A review of phosphate additives noted that the salts used as additives raise blood phosphate soon after eating, which raises FGF-23 and lowers active vitamin D, a hormone response with possible long-term effects on bones and kidneys.

2012ObservationalRitz et al., Deutsches Aerzteblatt International

Animal studies with high-dose phosphate showed faster kidney ageing, hardening of blood vessels and shorter lives, but at doses far above what people eat.

2010Animal studyOhnishi & Razzaque, FASEB Journal

Nano-sized particles in tricalcium phosphate

Depending on how it is made, tricalcium phosphate (E341(iii)) used to stop clumping can contain particles in the nano size range. A 2023 analysis of commercial samples found some particles under 100 nanometres. What happens to nano-sized calcium phosphate in the gut is not well studied.

Tests on commercial tricalcium phosphate (E341(iii)) found some particles under 100 nanometres in at least one dimension, meeting the EU definition of a nanomaterial, with particle size varying widely between makers.

2023Lab studyThe True Nature of Tricalcium Phosphate Used as Food Additive E341(iii), Nutrients (PMC10303396)

Nano-sized calcium phosphate particles behave differently in the gut from larger ones. Lab studies suggest low toxicity, but data in living animals at doses relevant to people are limited.

2022Lab studyCalcium Phosphate Micro- and Nanoparticles as Food Additive, Nutrients (PMC9693044)

Where it stands with the regulators

Approved in the UK and the EU

Daily limit. 40mg of phosphorus per kg of body weight a day, shared by all phosphate additives (E338 to E341, E343, E450 to E452), set by European reviewers in 2019.

Legal basis: On the Food Standards Agency's register of authorised food additives for Great Britain
Permitted foods: Baking and bakery products · Flour and flour mixes · Processed cheese · Dairy drinks and milk powders · Breakfast cereals · Table salt and seasoning mixes · Supplements and meal replacements · Processed meat · Infant formula and foods for special medical purposes (with set limits)
Maximum levels: No set maximum in most foods, as long as makers use no more than they need. Lower limits apply in infant formula and baby food.
History: Calcium phosphates have been allowed in EU and UK food for decades. European reviewers completed a required review of the whole phosphate group in 2019 and set a shared numerical daily limit for the first time. They raised concern that intake in some groups, particularly children, may go over it when all phosphate additives are added up. No ban or restriction followed, but they asked for better intake data and pointed out the difference in absorption between additive and natural phosphate.

Who should be careful

People with chronic kidney disease are usually told by their clinical team to limit all phosphate additives, because damaged kidneys cannot clear phosphate well and raised phosphate speeds up kidney decline. Parents may want to check for E341 in processed food, since children are the group most likely to go over the phosphate limit from additives alone. Look for E341, calcium phosphates, monocalcium phosphate, dicalcium phosphate or tricalcium phosphate.

The honest read

Calcium phosphates are among the most widely used additives and have been in processed food for generations. What they are and how they work is not in dispute. The real question is whether the total from phosphate additives across a processed diet, on top of the phosphate naturally in meat, dairy and wholegrains, pushes intake past what the body handles without consequence. The 2019 European review concluded it might, at least in children, though patchy intake data stopped it being precise. For people with kidney disease the concern is well established. The nano-particle question for tricalcium phosphate is a genuine gap in the data.

Common questions about calcium phosphates

Is E341 banned in the UK?

No. E341 is approved in the UK and is on the Food Standards Agency's register of authorised additives.

Is all phosphate in food the same as E341?

No. Phosphate in meat, dairy, eggs, wholegrains and pulses is absorbed at roughly 40 to 60%. Phosphate salts used as additives, including E341, are absorbed at around 80 to 100%, so they raise blood phosphate more for the amount eaten.

What foods contain E341?

Baking powder, self-raising flour, packaged cakes and biscuits, processed cheese slices, milk powder, protein powders, salt blends, breakfast cereals and some processed meat. Labels call it E341, calcium phosphates, monocalcium phosphate, dicalcium phosphate or tricalcium phosphate.