Is brominated vegetable oil (BVO) banned? What changed in the US, Canada and EU
Where brominated vegetable oil (BVO) is allowed
United States
Not permittedFDA's final rule, published July 3, 2024, removed 21 CFR 180.30, the only authorization for BVO in food (a stabilizer for flavoring oils in fruit-flavored beverages at up to 15 ppm). It took effect August 2, 2024. FDA set the compliance date, the point after which it begins enforcing, at one year after the effective date, and the federal alcohol-label agency TTB lists that as August 2, 2025. FDA's reason was that there was no longer a reasonable certainty of no harm. [1, 2, 3, 11]
Canada
Not permittedHealth Canada removed BVO from its List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Accepted Uses on August 30, 2024 (notice M-FAA-24-08). It had been allowed as a density adjusting agent in flavours for beverages containing citrus or spruce oils, at up to 15 ppm. A one-year transition to reformulate and relabel ran to August 30, 2025. BVO is absent from the current version of that list (now titled List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Purposes of Use, published February 4, 2026). [4, 5, 12]
European Union
Not permittedBVO is not on the Union list of food additives in Annex II of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (consolidated text of August 18, 2026), and Article 4 says only listed additives may be used in foods. Health Canada's 2024 assessment summary and FDA's 2024 rule both note that BVO is not permitted in Europe (FDA: in beverages in the EU, Australia, Japan and New Zealand). [3, 5, 6]
What is brominated vegetable oil (BVO)?
Brominated vegetable oil is plant oil that has been chemically reacted so that atoms of the element bromine attach to its molecules. It has historically been made from oils such as corn, cottonseed and olive, and more recently often from soybean oil, declared on labels as "brominated soybean oil."
FDA says BVO has been a flavoring-oil stabilizer since the 1920s and was once treated as generally recognized as safe. In 1970 FDA ruled it could no longer be regarded that way because of toxicity concerns, and allowed it as a food additive on an interim basis at no more than 15 parts per million (ppm) in the finished beverage. That interim permission lasted until 2024.
Why it's used, and where you'll find it
FDA says BVO was used primarily to help emulsify citrus-flavored soft drinks and keep the flavor from separating during distribution. Health Canada called it a "density adjusting agent" for flavours in beverages made with citrus or spruce oils. FDA noted that authorized substitutes for the job have long been in use and that few US beverages still contained BVO.
What the research and regulators say
Thyroid effects and bromine build-up in animals
In 2022 FDA scientists published a 90-day rat study. Rats fed BVO at 0.002% to 0.5% of their diet showed thyroid cell enlargement at the higher doses (the two highest groups of males and the top group of females), raised thyroid-stimulating hormone at the top dose, and brominated fatty acids building up in heart, liver and fat in a dose-dependent way. FDA's 2024 rule goes further: it says its studies confirmed earlier rat and pig findings of thyroid toxicity and bromine accumulation at doses closer to human exposure than older studies, showed adverse effects in animals at all doses tested, and left it unable to derive a safe level of intake. [3, 7]
Typical intake versus the animal doses
Assuming every BVO-labeled drink contained the full 15 ppm, FDA estimated average US intake at about 5 mg per person per day and 90th-percentile intake at about 9 mg, for people aged 2 and over. FDA's 2014 review had found no evidence of a health threat from this limited use, though many older studies, it noted, did not clearly establish safe long-term levels. Health Canada also found no immediate health concern, but could not set an acceptable daily intake and said effects once seen only at much higher doses now appeared at lower ones. [2, 3, 5]
A human case report
A 1997 case report described one man who drank 2 to 4 liters of a BVO-containing cola daily for about a month and developed bromism, with headache, fatigue, unsteady walking and memory loss. He improved sharply after hemodialysis. It is a single case at extreme intake, not a measure of risk from ordinary drinking. [8]
International review
JECFA, the joint FAO/WHO food additives committee, lists its latest evaluation of BVO as 1970, with no acceptable daily intake allocated (according to the INCHEM summary of JECFA evaluations). [9]
Who might choose to avoid it
The sources we read do not identify a group that needs to avoid BVO. The US and Canadian transition periods have ended, so BVO is no longer permitted in newly made food in either country.
How to spot it on a label
FDA required labels to list "brominated vegetable oil" or the specific oil, such as "brominated soybean oil." JECFA uses INS number 443.
Check what's in your own productsScan a barcode or a label photo and Label X-Ray flags brominated vegetable oil (BVO) and everything else in plain English, with your allergies checked automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Is BVO banned in the US?
Yes, for food. FDA removed its only authorization (21 CFR 180.30) in a rule effective August 2, 2024, with a one-year compliance period before enforcement.
Is BVO banned in Canada?
Yes. Health Canada removed BVO from its permitted food additive list on August 30, 2024, and the industry transition ended August 30, 2025.
Is BVO banned in Europe?
It is not on the EU's Union list of authorised food additives, so it cannot be used in food there.
Is BVO banned in California?
California's governor said when signing AB 418 in October 2023 that, after January 1, 2027, food made or sold in California cannot contain brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben or red dye 3.
What is BVO in drinks used for?
It kept citrus flavoring oils mixed through a drink instead of separating. FDA says authorized substitutes have long been in use.
What are the side effects of BVO?
In FDA's rat studies it affected the thyroid and bromine built up in tissue. In people, one 1997 case report linked extreme daily cola intake to bromism. FDA concluded there was no longer a reasonable certainty of no harm.
Related ingredients
Sources
- U.S. FDA — FDA Revokes Regulation Allowing the Use of Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO) in Food (accessed 2026-10-20)
- U.S. FDA — Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO) (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Federal Register (FDA) — Revocation of Authorization for Use of Brominated Vegetable Oil in Food (89 FR 55040, July 3, 2024) (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Health Canada — Modification to the List of permitted food additives with other accepted uses to remove brominated vegetable oil (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Health Canada — Brominated vegetable oil as food additive: Updated safety assessment summary (accessed 2026-10-20)
- EUR-Lex (European Union) — Consolidated text: Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives (version of 18.08.2026) (accessed 2026-10-20)
- PubMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine) — Toxicological evaluation of brominated vegetable oil in Sprague Dawley rats (accessed 2026-10-20)
- PubMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine) — Bromism from excessive cola consumption (accessed 2026-10-20)
- IPCS INCHEM (WHO/FAO JECFA summary) — JECFA Evaluations - Brominated vegetable oils (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Office of the Governor of California — Assembly Bill 418 signing message (October 7, 2023) (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (U.S. Treasury) — Reminder: FDA Revokes Authorizations for Use of Brominated Vegetable Oil and FD&C Red No. 3 (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Health Canada — 8. List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Purposes of Use (Lists of Permitted Food Additives), published 2026-02-04 (accessed 2026-10-20)
This page summarizes what regulators and published research say, as of the review date above. Rules and evidence change; check the linked sources for the latest. It is general information, not medical advice — talk to a doctor or pharmacist about your own health.