Zero Ultra
Monster Energy
Vegan, unclearGluten-Free, passesKeto, passes
E968 — Erythritol
Why it’s used
A sugar alcohol (polyol) that occurs naturally in trace amounts in some fruits and fermented foods and is produced industrially by fermenting glucose with yeast. It's about 60-80% as sweet as sugar with negligible calories and is used as a bulk sweetener in reduced-sugar products; unlike most polyols, it's largely absorbed and excreted unchanged, so it tends to cause less digestive upset at moderate intakes.
Other names
Zerose, Sukrin
Diet flags
Vegan, passesVegetarian, passes
Regulatory status
USA — Allowed
GRAS via industry self-affirmation and FDA GRAS notices (e.g., GRN 000789, 2018) rather than a specific 21 CFR food-additive listing; used per current good manufacturing practice with no FDA-mandated numerical intake limit. After a 2023 study linked circulating erythritol levels to cardiovascular events, FDA reviewed the paper and did not change erythritol's GRAS determination. Source (2026-07-23)
EU — Restricted
Authorized as E968 under Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008. EFSA's December 2023 re-evaluation set a first-time numerical ADI of 0.5 g/kg bw/day, and found that typical EU dietary exposure already exceeds this ADI across all population groups studied; a mandatory 'excessive consumption may produce a laxative effect' label warning remains in place. Source (2026-07-23)
Regulatory status by region
FDA's GRAS status for erythritol carries no FDA-mandated numerical intake ceiling — it's used per ordinary good manufacturing practice. The EU takes a different approach: EFSA's December 2023 re-evaluation set the first formal ADI (0.5 g/kg bw/day), based on the lowest dose causing diarrhea in human trials, and found typical EU dietary exposure already exceeds it across all population groups studied — a quantified intake limit the US framework doesn't set the same way. Both agencies reviewed the 2023 cardiovascular-risk study and found no causal link. Source: FDA GRAS notice inventory, verified 2026-07-23.
In the US, erythritol is GRAS with no FDA-set numerical intake limit — the 2023 cardiovascular-risk study did not change its status. In the EU, EFSA's December 2023 re-evaluation set a first-time ADI (0.5 g/kg bw/day) specifically because typical dietary exposure already exceeds it across all studied population groups, while finding no causal cardiovascular link — a formal, quantified intake ceiling the US framework doesn't impose in the same way. Source: EFSA re-evaluation, verified 2026-07-23.
Safety review
- GRN 76 — FDA has no questions
- GRN 208 — FDA has no questions
- GRN 382 — FDA has no questions
- GRN 401 — FDA has no questions
- GRN 789 — FDA has no questions
A GRAS notice status is FDA’s response to a company’s own self-determination that an ingredient is safe — not an independent FDA safety review.
Matched to FDA’s record for “Erythritol”. GRAS Notice Inventory (checked 2026-08-01)
Found in these products
1 product in our database contains E968.