Dextrose
Dextrose carries a source-backed screening score of 4/5 and appears in 39,628 indexed US food products. CSPI rates it “Cut Back.”
Source-backed answer
Dextrose appears in 39,628 catalogued products. CSPI rates it “Cut Back.” Its FDA SAFFA status is “GRAS.” Those source labels describe the ingredient; they do not establish whether a particular product, dose, allergy, or diet is safe.
- 39,628
- catalogued products
- #17
- usage rank of 293,342
- 6,754
- named brands represented
- 49%
- average depth down ingredient lists
Catalog prevalence comes from Open Food Facts ingredient lists. FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine labels are shown only when the source record contains them.
4/5 from FDA SAFFA + CSPI Chemical Cuisine
Where Dextrose sits among catalogued ingredients
- Usage rank
- #17
- of 293,342 ingredients that appear in at least one catalogued product.
- Typical depth in an ingredient list
- 49%
- Of the way down the captured list, averaged across the 39,630 products listing it (mean slot 15.2). Dextrose usually falls in the upper half of the list; this position does not measure its amount because source formatting, compound ingredients and labeling exceptions vary.
Derived by this site from the ingredient lists of every catalogued product (Open Food Facts), recomputed on each data refresh. 293,342 ingredients have at least one appearance and are ranked here. Usage and list position describe prevalence, not safety.
How to use this page
Audit the co-occurring flags first
52.5% of the linked products contain at least one separately flagged ingredient, making co-occurrence the dominant follow-up question. That figure does not identify Dextrose as the trigger. Open records such as 1 donut; 1/2 Cheese Pizza & 1/2 Pepperoni Pizza; 1/2 Loaf Butter White and inspect which ingredient row carries the caution marker. The 82.2/100 product average is therefore a triage signal for this surrounding formulation set, not an ingredient verdict. Its 49% average label depth helps locate the term when checking the package.
Processing is unusually concentrated here: Group 4 accounts for 39581 of 39584 NOVA-tagged records. That describes the surrounding products, not the substance. For a useful comparison, hold category and processing level constant, then inspect which named component changes alongside the caution flag; otherwise the product mix will confound the ingredient question.
Next check: open the lowest-scoring linked formulation and locate the exact caution-marked component.
Function
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, HUMECTANT, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
Safety Profile at a Glance
| Source | Classification | Year |
|---|---|---|
| FDA SAFFA | GRAS | 2024 |
| CSPI Chemical Cuisine | Cut Back | 2024 |
| PlainFoodSafe Score | 4/5 | 2026 |
| Product footprint | 39,628 products | OpenFoodFacts |
FDA SAFFA database, CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings, OpenFoodFacts product index. See methodology.
Products Containing Dextrose
A sample of 16 of the 39,628 indexed products containing Dextrose, with each product's overall safety score.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dextrose safe to eat? ▼
Dextrose has a PlainFoodSafe ingredient-screening score of 4/5. CSPI rates it "Cut Back." FDA SAFFA status: GRAS. These labels are not a product-, dose-, allergy-, or person-specific safety determination.
What products contain Dextrose? ▼
Dextrose is found in 39,628 products in our database, spanning various food categories and brands.
What does Dextrose do in food? ▼
Dextrose is used as a anticaking agent or free-flow agent, color or coloring adjunct, drying agent, flavor enhancer, flavoring agent or adjuvant, humectant, lubricant or release agent, nutritive sweetener, solvent or vehicle, stabilizer or thickener in food products.
Citation notes
Regulatory status from FDA SAFFA; safety ratings from CSPI Chemical Cuisine; product presence from Open Food Facts. See our methodology. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFoodSafe.Every figure on PlainFoodSafe is rendered directly from OpenFoodFacts and FDA data, no number is typed in by an editor. Ingredient figures are computed directly from OpenFoodFacts, FDA SAFFA, and CSPI Chemical Cuisine data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026.
