What is it?
Glycerol, also called glycerin, is a clear, sweet-tasting, syrupy liquid. For food use it is made by breaking down plant oils, most often rapeseed or palm.
E-numbers / Other additives / E422
Glycerol
also: Glycerine · Glycerin · Propane-1,2,3-triol
A natural alcohol used to keep food moist and prevent crystallisation. EFSA flagged a risk to children from high doses in slush drinks.
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Sugar (EU and non-EU), Glucose Syrup, Palm Oil, Humectant: E422, Colours: E163, E133; Emulsifier: E471, Stabilisers: E415, E466, Preservative: E202, Flavouring
E422
Glycerol
A single large slush drink can give a child more glycerol than European reviewers consider acceptable in one go, and can cause glycerol poisoning.
UK supermarket foods that declare E422: 2,045 of the 43,325 we checked (4.7%)
Counted by its code or its name in the ingredient list.
Only 1.4% of these labels print “E422”. Most use the name: look for “glycerol”.
Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted
How common it is in UK food, by aisle
- Bread and bakery757 products21% of 3,682
- Cakes, biscuits and desserts696 products19% of 3,715
- Chocolate and sweets182 products8.9% of 2,045
- Crisps and savoury snacks96 products2.8% of 3,428
What glycerol is, what it does and where you will see it
Why it’s worth knowing. A single large slush drink can give a child more glycerol than European reviewers consider acceptable in one go, and can cause glycerol poisoning. Parents of young children should limit slushies.
What does it do?
It holds on to water, which keeps food moist and lasting longer. It also stops liquids freezing solid, which is why slush drinks stay slushy. In sweets it stops sugar forming crystals, and it helps dissolve flavourings.
Where you will see it
Slush ice drinks, soft drinks, sweets such as fondant, marshmallows and chewing gum, cakes, dried fruit, processed fish and meat, energy bars, liqueurs and some medicines. Labels call it glycerol, glycerin or E422.
What the science says
Slush drinks can give children too much in one sitting
In 2026 European reviewers set a limit for one sitting: 125mg of glycerol per kg of body weight. Their modelling showed a child drinking a standard 250ml slush drink would go over it. The review followed hospital reports of toddlers and young children with glycerol poisoning after drinking slushies in one go. Reviewers asked the European Commission to set maximum amounts of glycerol in slush drinks.
Reviewers set a one-sitting limit of 125mg of glycerol per kg of body weight, and found slush drinks would take every age group over it, adults included.
2026Regulator reviewEFSA ANS Panel, EFSA Journal
Hospital reports of glycerol poisoning in toddlers and young children after drinking a lot of slush led the European Commission to ask for this review.
2026Case reportsEFSA Journal, Safety of acute exposure to the food additive glycerol (E 422) from beverages
No numerical daily limit for normal food use
The stomach irritation seen in some animal studies at high doses came from glycerol drawing water into the gut. European reviewers in 2017 set no numerical daily limit for normal food use, as the international committee had in 1976.
The international committee set no numerical daily limit.
1976Regulator reviewJECFA, FAO/WHO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives
Reviewers said the studies on reproduction and unborn young were limited, though none of them reported harm that rose with the dose.
2017Animal studyEFSA ANS Panel, Re-evaluation of glycerol (E 422) as a food additive, EFSA Journal
Where it stands with the regulators
Approved in the UK and the EU
Daily limit. No numerical daily limit (international committee 1976, confirmed by European reviewers 2017). A one-sitting limit of 125mg per kg of body weight was set by European reviewers in 2026.
- Legal basis
- On the Food Standards Agency's approved list for Great Britain
- Permitted foods
- Slush ice drinks · Alcohol-free wine · Sweets · Baked goods · Processed fish and meat · Dried fruit · Chewing gum · Liqueurs and spirits · Foods for special diets · Food supplements
- Maximum levels
- No set maximum for most foods. In 2026 European reviewers asked for legal maximums in slush drinks.
- History
- The international committee said in 1976 that no numerical daily limit was needed, and European food scientists agreed in 1981. European reviewers confirmed this in 2017 for normal food use. In 2026 they looked separately at single large doses from drinks, meaning slushies and alcohol-free wine, set a one-sitting limit of 125mg per kg of body weight, and found slush drinks go over it for every age group. They recommended legal maximums, but none had been adopted by mid-2026.
Who should be careful
Parents of young children, especially toddlers, should know a single standard slush drink can go over the one-sitting limit European reviewers set. Watch children who have had several slushies in a row, or who seem dizzy, sick or drowsy afterwards. Look for glycerol, glycerin or E422 on slush drink labels. On a bottle or pouch the barcode is quicker than the small print: our food additive scanner picks glycerol out of the ingredients.
The honest read
The 2026 concern is specific. It is about a single high dose from a slush drink, where a lot of glycerol is used to stop it freezing and can be drunk quickly, especially by small children.
The rules have not caught up yet. European reviewers have asked for limits, but no law has changed. The 2017 review covered everyday eating over a lifetime and set no limit at normal additive levels. It is the one-sitting slush-drink case that is now the live issue.
Common questions about glycerol
Is E422 banned in the UK?
No. Glycerol is allowed in many kinds of food in the UK and EU. European reviewers recommended limits on it in slush drinks in 2026.
Why did European reviewers raise a concern in 2026?
They were asked to look at single large doses from slush drinks after hospital reports of toddlers and young children with glycerol poisoning. They found a standard 250ml slush drink would take a child over the one-sitting limit they set, and recommended legal limits on glycerol in slush drinks.
What foods contain E422?
Slush drinks are the main concern. It is also in sweets such as marshmallows and chewing gum, cakes, dried fruit, some processed fish and meat, liqueurs, food supplements and medicines.
Is E422 vegan?
It can be. Food glycerol is usually made from plant oils such as rapeseed or palm. It can also come from animal fat, as a by-product of soap-making, though that is less common in food. Labels rarely say which, so ask the maker if it matters to you.
Sources
- EFSA ANS Panel: Re-evaluation of glycerol (E 422) as a food additive (2017)
- EFSA ANS Panel: Safety of acute exposure to the food additive glycerol (E 422) from beverages (2026)
- PubMed: Re-evaluation of glycerol (E 422) as a food additive
- Food Ingredients First: EFSA warns glycerol slush drinks
- Food Safety Magazine: Europeans Exposed to High Doses of Glycerol in Drinks, EFSA Recommends Setting Limits
- JECFA monograph: Glycerol (ADI not specified, 1976)
Last reviewed: 9 November 2026
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