E-numbers / Thickeners & emulsifiers / E475
also: PGE · Polyglycerol fatty acid esters
An emulsifier made from plant fats and glycerol. It keeps oil and water mixed in cakes, bread and sauces, and keeps the crumb soft.
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Fortified Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Rapeseed Oil, Palm Oil, Palm Fractions, Water, Sugar, Glucose, Salt, Emulsifier (E475), Flavourings and Colours (E160b, E161b, E100)
Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids are emulsifiers made by joining chains of glycerol to fats, usually from sunflower, rapeseed or palm oil.
733
of the 43,325 UK supermarket foods we checked declare E475 in their ingredients
That is 1.7%, counted by its code or its name.
Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted
Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids are emulsifiers made by joining chains of glycerol to fats, usually from sunflower, rapeseed or palm oil. An emulsifier stops oil and water separating. E475 is different from its close relative E476, which is made from castor oil.
It sits where fat and water meet and keeps them mixed. In bread and cakes it also works with the starch and gluten, making dough easier to handle, slowing staling and giving a softer crumb. In chocolate cake coatings and fat-based fillings it controls how runny they are and how the fat sets.
Cakes, biscuits and pastries, bread improvers, margarine, chocolate cake coatings, dessert mixes, and some soups and sauces. UK labels call it polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, polyglycerol esters or E475.
In the gut, E475 is broken down almost entirely into its parts, polyglycerols and fats. Very little gets into the blood whole. The fats join the body's normal fat handling, and the polyglycerols are mostly passed out. This quick and near-complete breakdown was a key reason reviewers set no numerical daily limit.
Very little whole polyglycerol ester is absorbed from the gut. It is quickly and almost fully split into polyglycerols and fats before absorption.
Short, medium and long-term animal feeding studies found no harm at any dose tested, and standard tests found no DNA damage. European reviewers found no dose that caused harm, so they did not think a numerical daily limit was needed.
Short-term, medium-term and long-term animal studies found no harm from polyglycerol esters at any dose tested.
Lab and animal tests found no evidence of DNA damage.
A 2022 European follow-up looked not at the additive but at contaminants that can come from making it: heavy metals (arsenic, lead, mercury and cadmium), erucic acid, and oil-refining contaminants called 3-MCPD and glycidyl esters. It recommended tighter limits on all of them. This is about manufacturing quality, not the emulsifier itself.
Reviewers recommended lower limits for arsenic, lead, mercury and cadmium in E475, and new limits for erucic acid, 3-MCPD and glycidyl esters, based on tests of commercial products.
Daily limit. None set (European reviewers, 2017). It used to be 25mg per kg of body weight (1978).
No group is advised to avoid the additive itself. People avoiding certain fats, such as palm, may want to know the source fat is not always on the label, so ask the maker if it matters. Look for polyglycerol esters of fatty acids or E475.
Polyglycerol esters are among the more studied emulsifiers: two European reviews, in 2017 and 2022, decades of international review, and animal studies across generations with no harm found. The 2022 review tightened limits on manufacturing impurities, a routine quality step rather than a sign of a problem with the emulsifier. It has been in wide use since the middle of the twentieth century without repeated review turning up a concern.
No. Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids are approved in UK and EU food and are on the Food Standards Agency's list.
The 2017 review looked at the safety of E475 itself and concluded no numerical daily limit was needed. The 2022 follow-up was narrower: it looked only at contaminants from manufacturing, such as heavy metals, and recommended tighter purity limits. The two reviews answer different questions.
Mostly cakes, biscuits, pastries and other baked goods, where it helps dough handle better and keeps the crumb soft. It is also in margarine, chocolate cake coatings and some soups or sauces. Look for polyglycerol esters of fatty acids or E475.
It depends on the fat used. It is usually made from sunflower, rapeseed or palm oil, which makes it vegan in most products, but animal fats can be used. The source is rarely on the label, so ask the maker if you need to be sure.
Last reviewed: 20 June 2026
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