Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate carries a safety score of 3/5 and appears in 190 indexed US food products.

Safety score 60.0%

3/5 from FDA SAFFA + CSPI Chemical Cuisine

How common is vs other flagged additives?

Number of indexed products containing each of the most common flagged additives — Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate highlighted.

Indexed products containing each flagged additive. Source: Open Food Facts ingredient lists × FDA SAFFA × CSPI Chemical Cuisine.

Caramel Coloring22612Red 4021595Yellow 518987Carrageenan17853Blue 116643Yellow 613560Sucralose10490Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate190
Indexed products containing each flagged additive. Source: Open Food Facts ingredient lists × FDA SAFFA × CSPI Chemical Cuisine.
Safety Score
3/5

Safety Assessment

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate has a moderate safety profile (3/5). While approved for use, some studies or consumer advocacy groups have raised questions about certain aspects of this ingredient. Consumers who prefer caution may wish to limit intake.

What the Data Says About

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate currently appears in 190 products across the OpenFoodFacts catalog we index, which gives a concrete measure of its footprint on US grocery shelves. Our internal safety score of 3/5 synthesizes FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) regulatory status with the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) Chemical Cuisine classification. These two frameworks capture different questions: regulators ask whether exposure at typical intake is acceptable, while consumer-advocacy groups examine cumulative dietary load and vulnerable-population risk.

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate serves one or more technical functions in food manufacturing — stabilization, flavor, preservation, or structural role — which explains its presence across multiple product categories in our database. Inspection and outbreak records frequently trace back to control failures around functional additives, whether through batch contamination, undisclosed substitutions, or labeling mismatches that trigger recall classifications by the FDA.

No specific concern flags are attached to Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate in our current data snapshot beyond the regulatory and CSPI classifications above. That does not rule out individual sensitivity reactions, and anyone managing allergies, elimination diets, or chronic conditions should verify with a qualified healthcare professional before relying on population-level ratings.

Safety Profile at a Glance

Regulatory and safety classifications for Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate
Source Classification Year
FDA SAFFA Not listed 2024
CSPI Chemical Cuisine Not rated 2024
PlainFoodSafe Score 3/5 2026
Product footprint 190 products OpenFoodFacts

FDA SAFFA database, CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings, OpenFoodFacts product index. See methodology.

Products Containing

Showing 50 of 190 products

12 frosted cakes with spring strawberry flavored filling, spring strawberry
Tastykake, Tasty Baking Company
85/100
12 S'Mores Flavored Cakes, 12 S'Mores
Tastykake
95/100
Apple Pie
Bakery Fresh Goodness
85/100
Apple streusel coffee cakes, apple streusel
Unknown
25/100
Bada Blue, Decorating Icing
Cake Boss
75/100
Baked Pie, Lemon
Tastykake
100/100
Baked Pie, Peach
Tastykake, Tasty Baking Company
100/100
Bakery fresh goodness, no sugar added pie, cherry
Bakery Fresh Goodness
60/100
Banana Cake With Icing, Banana
Tastykake
90/100
Banana mega muffin
Unknown
100/100
Birthday cake mini muffins, birthday cake
Unknown
85/100
Birthday Cup Cakes
Hostess, Hostess Brands
0/100
Birthday frosted yellow cake with creamy filling cupcakes, birthday
Unknown
0/100
Blueberry flavored mini donuts
Tastykake, Tasty Baking Company
35/100
Broad Street Bakery Apple Turnover
Unknown
100/100
Brownie batter dark chocolate bar, brownie batter
Unknown
95/100
Canola oil cooking spray
Unknown
100/100
Caramel iced yellow cake with salted topping & creamy caramel filling cupcakes, salted caramel
Hostess
10/100
Cherry classic recipe baked pie, cherry
Unknown
100/100
Chocolate bells enrobed upside down chocolate cupcakes with creme filling
Tastykake
95/100
Chocolate breaded sponge cake with chocolate creamy filling
Unknown
50/100
Chocolate creme filled cakes bells
Mrs. Freshley's, Flowers Foods Inc.
95/100
Chocolate Cupcakes
hostess
85/100
Chocolate flavored creme filled cakes swiss rolls
Mrs. Freshley's, Flowers Foods Inc.
80/100
Cloud Cakes
Little Debbie
50/100
Coconut & marshmallow covered chocolate cake with creamy filling
Unknown
0/100
Coconut & marshmallow covered chocolate cake with creamy filling, coconut & marshmallow
Hostess
0/100
Cookie bars
Tastykake, Tasty Baking Company
95/100
Cookie dough dark chocolate bar, cookie dough
Unknown
95/100
Cooking Spray
Big Chef
100/100
Cooking spray, butter
Big Chef
100/100
Corn Muffins
Thomas
100/100
Cotton candy
Unknown
50/100
Cream cheese streusel coffee cakes
Unknown
100/100
Cream cheese streusel coffee cakes
Hostess
100/100
Creme filled chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip cremes
Mrs. Freshley's, Flowers Foods Inc.
95/100
Creme filled cookies
Mrs. Freshley's
95/100
Creme Filled Devils Food Cakes
Drake's
100/100
Cup cakes
Unknown
0/100
Cup cakes
Unknown
60/100
Cupcakes
Unknown
0/100
Cupcakes
Hostess, Hostess Brands Llc
10/100
CupCakes
Dolly Madison Bakery
85/100
Cupcakes, dark chocolate raspberry
Unknown
10/100
Cupkakes
Unknown
95/100
Cupkakes, Chocolate
Tastykake, Tasty Baking Company
100/100
Deluxe jumbo cinnamon rolls with buttercream icing, cinnamon
Unknown
45/100
Double chocolate creme filled mini cake delights, double chocolate
Unknown
100/100
Double chocolate delights creme filled mini cakes, double chocolate
Unknown
100/100
Double chocolate mega muffin, double chocolate
Unknown
100/100

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate safe to eat?

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate has a safety score of 3/5. Always check with a healthcare provider if you have specific dietary concerns.

What products contain Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate?

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate is found in 190 products in our database, spanning various food categories and brands.

What does Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate do in food?

Sorbic Acid And Potassium Sorbate serves various technical functions in food manufacturing and processing.

Where does this ingredient safety data come from?

Safety data comes from the FDA's SAFFA (Substances Added to Food) database, CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) ratings, and the OpenFoodFacts product database. Product counts reflect items cataloged in OpenFoodFacts.