NutriDex

The Supplement Research Compendium
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Potassium Sorbate

E202

The most widely used "soft" preservative — keeps mold and yeast out of cheese, wine, and baked goods

Moderate evidence 🍬Sweeteners & Additives

✚ Updated · How we grade evidence

Evidence tier
Moderate
Research weight
Citations
10 verified / 10
Classification
Sweeteners & Additives
❝
What the evidence says. Several controlled trials; effects real but modest or context-dependent.

What is Potassium Sorbate?

Potassium Sorbate (E202) is a sweetener or food additive used for prevents microbial spoilage — inhibits molds, yeasts, and many bacteria. NutriDex grades the human evidence as Moderate. Potassium sorbate (E202) is the potassium salt of sorbic acid, a near-flavorless antimicrobial preservative that suppresses molds, yeasts, and many bacteria. In water it dissociates to active sorbic acid, working best at pH below ~6. It is one of the most widely used food preservatives worldwide, FDA GRAS and EU-approved, and is metabolized like a fatty acid (beta-oxidized to CO2 and water). The weight of human-relevant evidence is reassuring at normal intakes; EFSA's 2019 re-evaluation set a group ADI of 11 mg sorbic acid/kg body weight/day. In-vitro genotoxicity signals in human lymphocytes exist but are inconsistent and at concentrations far above dietary exposure.

Purported Benefits

✓Prevents microbial spoilage — inhibits molds, yeasts, and many bacteria
✓Extends shelf life of cheese, wine, baked goods, dried fruit, and beverages
✓Near tasteless and odorless — minimal flavor impact vs. benzoates
✓Effective at low, mildly acidic pH (<6) and at low use levels
✓Highly water-soluble (unlike sorbic acid itself), so easy to formulate
✓Metabolized as a fatty acid (beta-oxidation) rather than accumulating

Dosing & Compounds

Typical Dose
FDA: Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS), 21 CFR 182.3640, used per good manufacturing practice (no numeric ADI). JECFA/EU SCF historically set a group ADI of 25 mg/kg bw/day (as sorbic acid). EFSA reduced this to a temporary 3 mg/kg bw/day in 2015 on reproductive-toxicity data, then revised it to a group ADI of 11 mg sorbic acid/kg bw/day in its 2019 follow-up opinion (BMDL ~1,110 mg/kg ÷ uncertainty factor 100), covering E200 and E202.
Active Compounds
E-number: E202 (potassium salt of sorbic acid, E200; calcium sorbate E203 was de-listed in the EU in 2018)CAS 24634-61-5; sold as 'potassium sorbate' or 'sorbic acid potassium salt'Cheese, yogurt, and dairy spreadsWine and cider (arrests refermentation), soft drinks and fruit juicesBaked goods, tortillas, and bread (mold inhibition)Dried fruit, dips, dressings, margarine; also cosmetics and personal-care products

Safety & Cautions

At dietary levels potassium sorbate is well tolerated; it is metabolized like a fatty acid and is not bioaccumulative. The main practical issue is occasional skin/contact irritation or mild allergic reactions (more relevant in cosmetics). In-vitro studies report concentration-dependent DNA damage and chromosomal/micronucleus effects in cultured human lymphocytes, and a classic Japanese study found that sorbate decomposition products reacting with ascorbic acid (vitamin C) plus iron salts were mutagenic — but each component alone was inactive, and these are high-concentration in-vitro signals not demonstrated to occur at dietary exposure. Other lymphocyte studies found no genotoxicity, so the overall evidence is mixed and not considered a public-health concern at intakes within the ADI. EFSA's lowered ADI was driven by animal reproductive/developmental endpoints, not human harm. No credible evidence links normal dietary E202 to cancer in humans; it is not classified by IARC. Educational only — always check with your doctor or pharmacist before combining Potassium Sorbate with any medicine.

Key Studies ★ 10 studies

Systematic review Genetics and Molecular Biology 2025 ✓ Full text
Systematic review of 19 studies on food-preservative cytogenotoxicity in mammalian cells found potassium sorbate consistently associated with DNA damage, micronucleus formation, and chromosomal abnormalities.
regulatory US FDA 21 CFR 182.3640 ✓ Source
Potassium sorbate is affirmed Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) as a chemical preservative when used per good manufacturing practice.
regulatory EFSA ANS Panel 2015 ✓ Source
Re-evaluation (E200/E202/E203) lowered the group ADI to a temporary 3 mg sorbic acid/kg bw/day on reproductive/developmental toxicity data, down from the legacy 25 mg/kg.
regulatory EFSA FAF Panel 2019 ✓ Source
Follow-up opinion derived a BMDL of 1,110 mg/kg bw/day and set a revised group ADI of 11 mg sorbic acid/kg bw/day for E200 and E202.
regulatory EFSA follow-up summary (PMC7009143) 2019 ✓ Full text
Open-access full text of the EFSA 2019 follow-up establishing the 11 mg/kg bw/day group ADI for sorbic acid and potassium sorbate.
Safety / toxicology Insects 2024 (Drosophila) ✓ Full text
In vivo Drosophila study found excessive potassium sorbate reduced lifespan and fecundity, induced midgut apoptosis and ROS accumulation, and altered intestinal stem-cell differentiation via Notch downregulation.
Safety / toxicology Scientific Reports 2025 (network toxicology) ✓ Source
Network toxicology and molecular docking analysis, validated by in vitro assays, elucidated potential hepatotoxic and carcinogenic mechanisms of potassium sorbate.
in-vitro Mamur et al. 2010 (Food Chem Toxicol) ✓ PubMed
Potassium sorbate was clearly genotoxic to human peripheral blood lymphocytes in 3 of 4 assays (chromosomal aberrations, micronucleus, comet) in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro.
in-vitro Kitano et al. 2002 (Food Chem Toxicol) ✓ PubMed
Decomposition products of potassium sorbate reacting with ascorbic acid plus Fe salt were mutagenic/DNA-damaging; the individual components were inactive when tested alone.
in-vitro Schiffmann & Schlatter 1992 (Food Chem Toxicol) ✓ PubMed
Re-examination of potassium and sodium sorbate found no relevant genotoxic potential, contributing to the historically reassuring regulatory record.
10 sources cited · 10 verified Search all studies on PubMed ↗

Common questions about Potassium Sorbate

What is Potassium Sorbate used for?

Potassium Sorbate is most often taken for Prevents microbial spoilage — inhibits molds, yeasts, and many bacteria, Extends shelf life of cheese, wine, baked goods, dried fruit, and beverages, Near tasteless and odorless — minimal flavor impact vs. benzoates, Effective at low, mildly acidic pH (<6) and at low use levels. The most widely used "soft" preservative — keeps mold and yeast out of cheese, wine, and baked goods

Does Potassium Sorbate work — what does the evidence say?

Moderate evidence. Several controlled trials; effects real but modest or context-dependent. Potassium sorbate (E202) is the potassium salt of sorbic acid, a near-flavorless antimicrobial preservative that suppresses molds, yeasts, and many bacteria. In water it dissociates to active sorbic acid, working best at pH below ~6. It is one of the most widely used food preservatives worldwide, FDA GRAS and EU-approved, and is metabolized like a fatty acid (beta-oxidized to CO2 and water). The weight of human-relevant evidence is reassuring at normal intakes; EFSA's 2019 re-evaluation set a group ADI of 11 mg sorbic acid/kg body weight/day. In-vitro genotoxicity signals in human lymphocytes exist but are inconsistent and at concentrations far above dietary exposure.

What is the typical dose of Potassium Sorbate?

FDA: Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS), 21 CFR 182.3640, used per good manufacturing practice (no numeric ADI). JECFA/EU SCF historically set a group ADI of 25 mg/kg bw/day (as sorbic acid). EFSA reduced this to a temporary 3 mg/kg bw/day in 2015 on reproductive-toxicity data, then revised it to a group ADI of 11 mg sorbic acid/kg bw/day in its 2019 follow-up opinion (BMDL ~1,110 mg/kg ÷ uncertainty factor 100), covering E200 and E202.

Is Potassium Sorbate safe? Any cautions or side effects?

At dietary levels potassium sorbate is well tolerated; it is metabolized like a fatty acid and is not bioaccumulative. The main practical issue is occasional skin/contact irritation or mild allergic reactions (more relevant in cosmetics). In-vitro studies report concentration-dependent DNA damage and chromosomal/micronucleus effects in cultured human lymphocytes, and a classic Japanese study found that sorbate decomposition products reacting with ascorbic acid (vitamin C) plus iron salts were mutagenic — but each component alone was inactive, and these are high-concentration in-vitro signals not demonstrated to occur at dietary exposure. Other lymphocyte studies found no genotoxicity, so the overall evidence is mixed and not considered a public-health concern at intakes within the ADI. EFSA's lowered ADI was driven by animal reproductive/developmental endpoints, not human harm. No credible evidence links normal dietary E202 to cancer in humans; it is not classified by IARC.

How many studies support Potassium Sorbate?

NutriDex cites 10 sources for Potassium Sorbate, graded "Moderate".

Cite this page
APA

Peh, D. (2026). Potassium Sorbate (E202): Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects & Evidence. NutriDex — The Supplement Research Compendium. Retrieved 26 Jun 2026, from https://nutridex.info/s/potassium-sorbate

BibTeX
@misc{nutridex_potassium_sorbate,
  author       = {Peh, Daryl},
  title        = {Potassium Sorbate (E202): Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects \& Evidence},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {NutriDex --- The Supplement Research Compendium},
  url          = {https://nutridex.info/s/potassium-sorbate},
  note         = {Reviewed by Dr Daryl Peh, MBBS Singapore, MMed FM. Accessed 2026-06-26}
}

For medical claims, citing the underlying primary studies linked above is preferred. NutriDex is an educational reference, not medical advice.

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