E1421 — Acetylated starch (vinyl acetate)
Why it’s used
A chemically modified starch (corn, potato, tapioca, or waxy maize) esterified with vinyl acetate to attach acetyl groups, which lowers the gelatinization temperature and improves clarity, freeze-thaw stability, and resistance to retrogradation (staling); used as a thickener and stabilizer in frozen sauces, gravies, fruit fillings, and baby food.
Other names
Starch acetate esterified with vinyl acetate, Acetylated starch, Modified starch E1421
Diet flags
Regulatory status
Permitted as 'food starch-modified' under 21 CFR 172.892, which authorizes vinyl acetate as a treating agent for food-grade modified starch at up to 7.5%. Source (2026-07-24)
Not part of the EU's harmonised list of modified starches authorised under Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 Annex II/III, which covers only E1404, E1410, E1412-E1414, E1420, E1422, E1440, E1442, and E1450-E1452 (confirmed by EFSA's 2017 group re-evaluation opinion, which names exactly those 12 substances as the EU-authorised set). Source (2026-07-24)
Regulatory status by region
The FDA regulates modified starches generically under 21 CFR 172.892 by permitted reagent (vinyl acetate, propylene oxide, octenyl succinic anhydride, etc.) rather than by individual Codex/INS number, so this compound is allowed. The EU instead authorizes modified starches by name on a fixed list, and this specific INS-designated starch was never added to that list, so it has no lawful use as a food additive in the EU even though it carries a recognized E-number.
The EU authorises only 12 specific modified starches under Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (E1404, E1410, E1412-E1414, E1420, E1422, E1440, E1442, E1450-E1452). This Codex/INS-recognised starch was not carried into that harmonised list, so it cannot legally be used as a food additive in the EU, unlike the US which permits it generically by reagent under 21 CFR 172.892.
Found in these products
None of the products in our database currently contain E1421.