Talc (E553b)

Names on a label

• E553b
• E 553b
• Talc

Labels outside Europe often print the number on its own, without the E.

What it’s used for

The FDA lists these uses in food: formulation aid; masticatory substance; non-nutritive sweetener; processing aid; washing or surface removal agent.¹

What regulators and scientists say

• The FDA lists it as generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for its intended use in food (21 CFR 182.70, 182.90).¹
• IARC classifies it as probably carcinogenic to humans (Group 2A, 2025).²

IARC’s groups “indicate the strength of the evidence as to whether an agent is capable of causing cancer,” but they don’t measure how likely cancer is at a given level of exposure.³