At a glance
How does Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids appear on a UK label?
Useful label-reading detail
Look for “mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids” or E471. The label does not show which fatty acids were used or the amount.
How it is classified
A large family of glycerol-fat esters used as emulsifiers, and a possible NOVA formulation marker. Not a FODMAP.
Why amount matters
Mono- and diglycerides are permitted at quantum satis in most foods, so the label cannot show the amount added; a numerical maximum applies only in specific categories such as infant formula.
Evidence by study type
What do studies show about Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids?
What was studied: EFSA’s 2017 re-evaluation, with a 2021 follow-up for infant formula, assessed absorption and toxicology data and found no safety concern. Separately, an ex-vivo screen of 20 emulsifiers found no discernible impact from mono- and diglycerides on the microbiota measures taken.
What it cannot tell us: Neither a regulatory toxicology review nor an ex-vivo screen is a controlled human feeding trial; unlike carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate 80, carrageenan and soy lecithin, E471 has not yet been tested in the newer human emulsifier trials.
What human studies show about Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
No dedicated human trial of E471 itself was identified for this page. The 2026 Wellens trial, sometimes cited in emulsifier discussions, tested carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate 80, carrageenan, soy lecithin and native rice starch, not E471, so its findings should not be transferred to mono- and diglycerides.
SourcesUK approved-additives listGreat Britain food-additive registerEFSA E471 assessment2021 ex-vivo emulsifier study2026 emulsifier trial
What animal or laboratory studies suggest about Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
EFSA’s reviews drew on animal absorption and toxicology studies and did not report an adverse gastrointestinal finding; these are regulatory toxicology studies rather than gut-microbiota-focused research. In the same ex-vivo screen that found carboxymethylcellulose and polysorbate 80 strongly disruptive to a cultured human microbiota, mono- and diglycerides were among the few of 20 tested emulsifiers with no discernible impact on the measurements taken. That is one model, not a clinical outcome.
SourcesUK approved-additives listGreat Britain food-additive registerEFSA E471 assessment2021 ex-vivo emulsifier study2026 emulsifier trial
What we still do not know about Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
Because E471 covers many possible glycerol-fatty-acid combinations from different fats and oils, and because no dedicated human emulsifier trial has tested it, individual and long-term effects remain largely untested for this specific ingredient.
Great Britain regulatory context
E471 is authorised in Great Britain. EFSA’s 2017 re-evaluation concluded no numerical ADI was needed and no safety concern at reported uses; a 2021 follow-up reached a similarly reassuring conclusion for infant-formula uses.
SourcesUK approved-additives listGreat Britain food-additive registerEFSA E471 assessment2021 ex-vivo emulsifier study2026 emulsifier trial
Common questions
Questions people ask about this label
Does the CMC and polysorbate 80 research apply to E471?
No. Those findings are specific to those two emulsifiers. E471 has a different chemical structure and its own, more limited evidence base, so concerns about one emulsifier should not be assumed to transfer to another without direct evidence.
SourcesEFSA E471 assessment
Was E471 included in the 2026 five-emulsifier human trial?
No. That trial tested carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate 80, carrageenan, soy lecithin and native rice starch. E471 was not one of the five, so its results cannot be cited as evidence about mono- and diglycerides.
Sources2026 emulsifier trial
What did the ex-vivo emulsifier screen find for E471?
Mono- and diglycerides were among the emulsifiers with no discernible impact on the microbiota measurements taken in that model, alongside soy lecithin. An ex-vivo result is not the same as a clinical outcome.
Is E471 vegan or halal?
Not necessarily, and the ingredient name alone does not say. The EU/GB specification for mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids allows manufacture from either vegetable or animal fats and oils, and "mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids" or E471 does not distinguish which was used. If the source matters to you, look for a vegan, vegetarian or halal mark on the pack, or check with the manufacturer directly.
SourcesEFSA E471 assessment
References
Sources used for this page
- Food Standards Agency, Approved additives and E numbers
- Food Standards Agency, Register of food-additive authorisations for Great Britain
- EFSA ANS Panel (2017), Re-evaluation of mono- and di-glycerides of fatty acids (E 471) as food additives
- Naimi et al. (2021), Direct impact of commonly used emulsifiers on human gut microbiota ex vivo
- Wellens et al. (2026), Placebo-controlled trial of five dietary emulsifiers
Written and evidence-checked by the GutGuard editorial team. We favour official UK guidance, systematic reviews and primary human research, and label animal, laboratory and exploratory findings clearly. Read our editorial method.