Thickener or gelling agent
E401 (sodium alginate): what it is, its sources, vegan or not
E401 is sodium alginate, a thickener. E401 comes from seaweed. Vegan and vegetarian profiles get Fits you.
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Fits you
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E401=seaweed
What is E401?
E401 (sodium alginate) is a thickener, an additive that thickens a food or gives it the texture of a gel.
What is E401 made from?
- Seaweed
Is E401 vegan?
Fits you. E401 comes from seaweed. Nothing from an animal.
Bravoora is a calorie tracker and ingredient checker app. Scan a pack, a supplement or a skincare label and it answers for each person on your plan.
What the app says to each profile, and the reason it shows.
What other names does E401 have on a label?
Any of these on a pack means E401. The checker reads them all.
What would change the answer for E401?
For E401, only the ingredient list itself. A code the camera cannot read gets Needs one more scan, and the app never guesses a code it cannot see.
Sources: EU, US and Codex additive rules
Where additives are listed and approved. Bravoora reads the source and the diet; it does not rate the hazard.
- EU Regulation 1333/2008 on food additives (the E-number list)
- EU Regulation 1169/2011, Annex II: the allergen sources a label must name
- US FDA: Food Additive Status List
- FAO/WHO Codex: General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA) online
Names and classes cross-checked with Open Food Facts (Open Database License).
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