E-numbers / Other additives / E459
also: betadex · beta-cyclodextrine
A ring-shaped sugar molecule used to wrap and stabilise flavourings, keeping them intact until you eat the food.
Scan a barcode to check a food for beta-cyclodextrin. NutraSafe Pro · £3.99/month · iOS
Skimmed Milk Powder, Glucose Syrup, Coconut Oil, Black Tea Extract (5%), Stabilisers (E340ii, E459), Natural Spices (Cinnamon, Cardamom, Ginger, Nutmeg, Black Pepper, Clove)
Beta-cyclodextrin is a cyclic oligosaccharide, a ring of seven glucose units linked together.
3
of the 43,325 UK supermarket foods we checked declare E459 in their ingredients
That is under 0.1%, counted by its code or its name.
Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted
Beta-cyclodextrin is a cyclic oligosaccharide, a ring of seven glucose units linked together. It is derived from starch by enzymatic conversion. Its hollow, cone-shaped interior can trap small molecules, such as flavour compounds, inside a protective shell.
It acts as a carrier for flavourings. The flavour molecule sits inside the cyclodextrin cavity, shielded from heat, light, and oxygen. Once the food is eaten, the cavity opens in the digestive tract and releases the flavour. In the gut, beta-cyclodextrin is broken down by colonic bacteria and endogenous amylases into maltose and glucose.
Its permitted use in the UK and EU is narrow: it is authorised only as a carrier for flavourings in foods. In practice it appears in flavoured confectionery, baked goods, flavoured snack products, and encapsulated flavour preparations used by manufacturers. On a label it appears as beta-cyclodextrin or E459, usually listed alongside the flavouring it carries.
Beta-cyclodextrin is not absorbed intact to any significant degree. It reaches the large intestine largely undigested, where gut bacteria and colonic amylases break it into maltose and glucose, which are then absorbed normally. Concentrations in blood and tissues remain very low. This breakdown profile places it close to a dietary fibre in metabolic terms.
In animals and humans, beta-cyclodextrin is hydrolysed by gut microflora and endogenous amylases in the colon to maltose and glucose; concentrations in tissues and serum remain below 1%.
The Scientific Committee on Food set an acceptable daily intake of 5 mg per kilogram of body weight per day in 1996. EFSA's 2016 re-evaluation confirmed that exposures from permitted food uses fall well below this figure. The ADI is based on long-term animal studies; no reproductive or developmental toxicity signals were identified at relevant doses.
The SCF allocated an ADI of 5 mg/kg body weight per day to beta-cyclodextrin in 1996, a figure EFSA's 2016 re-evaluation found consistent with the available toxicological database.
Beta-cyclodextrin shows very low acute oral toxicity. The oral lethal dose in rodents and dogs exceeds 3000 mg per kilogram body weight, orders of magnitude above any realistic dietary intake from food use.
Oral LD50 values in mice, rats and dogs are all greater than 3000 mg/kg body weight, indicating very low acute oral toxicity.
No population group is specifically required to avoid it at permitted use levels. People with very rare hereditary starch metabolism disorders may wish to note it is a glucose-derived molecule. Look for beta-cyclodextrin or E459 alongside the word flavouring in the ingredients list.
Beta-cyclodextrin is one of the more technically specific additives on the list, authorised only to carry flavourings rather than as a broad-purpose additive. The science on how the body handles it is well characterised, the toxicology database is long-established, and its use is restricted to a narrow food-technology role. There are no active regulatory concerns or re-restriction proceedings. Its profile as an additive is routine and its appearance in foods is relatively uncommon.
No. Beta-cyclodextrin (E459) is approved for use in the UK under assimilated EU legislation carried over after Brexit. It is permitted solely as a carrier for flavourings.
It wraps flavour molecules inside its hollow ring structure to protect them during processing and storage. The flavour is released when you eat the food and the cyclodextrin breaks down in the gut.
It appears in products that use encapsulated flavourings, such as some flavoured confectionery, baked goods, and snack foods. Its presence depends entirely on whether the manufacturer has used an encapsulated flavouring that contains it. It is not a common additive in everyday UK supermarket products.
Yes. Beta-cyclodextrin is produced from starch by enzymatic conversion. No animal-derived ingredients are used in its production.
Last reviewed: 20 June 2026
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