Is Butyl Lactate safe in cosmetics?
Butyl Lactate has a safety rating of "EXCELLENT" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.
Excellent
Cosmetic Ingredient
Butyl Lactate
Also known as: 4-03-00-00649, BRN 1721597, Butyl 2-hydroxypropanoate, Butyl alpha-hydroxypropionate, EINECS 205-316-4 (+6 more)
INCI: BUTYL LACTATE
Butyl Lactate (CAS 138-22-7) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Fragrance, Solvent. EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: permitted. Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in pharmaceutical data.
View industrial chemical safety profile for CAS 138-22-7 →
Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Function
Fragrance, Solvent
Safety Rating
EXCELLENT
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
butyl 2-hydroxypropanoate
InChIKey
MRABAEUHTLLEML-UHFFFAOYSA-N
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
Favorable — CIR established safe use conditions; MoS inherently accounted for in the concentration/pH restrictions.
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Butyl Lactate.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
HRIPT Human Patch Test Studies
1 human repeat insult patch test aggregated from dermatological literature.
| Test Type | N | Sensitized | Dose µg/cm² | NESIL µg/cm² | Potency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HMT | - | 0 | 675 | - | - |
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (2)
Carcinogen Classification
No indication of carcinogenicity to humans (not listed by IARC).
Source: Toxin and Toxin Target Database (T3DB)
Skin Eye Respiratory Irritation
A skin irritant.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Regulatory (2)
JECFA Number
932
Source: Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
JECFA Evaluation
BUTYL LACTATE | 2001 | No safety concern at current levels of intake when used as a flavouring agent | TRS 909-JECFA 57/98 | FAS 48-JECFA 57/333
Source: Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Deodorizer
Flavouring and nutrient
Fragrance
Solvent
Regulatory List Membership (3)
IFRA Fragrance Transparency List
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS)
Consumer Product Chemical
Expert Verdict
Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for Butyl Lactate.
Regulatory Flags
fragrance-component
ifra_fragrance
fda_food_additive
jecfa_safe
Known Synonyms
4-03-00-00649
BRN 1721597
Butyl 2-hydroxypropanoate
Butyl alpha-hydroxypropionate
EINECS 205-316-4
FEMA No. 2205
2-Hydroxypropanoic acid butyl ester
NSC 6533
Butylester kyseliny mlecne
UNII-0UI63W814U
(+/-)-Butyl lactate
Chemical Function
Solvent
Deodorizer
Flavouring and nutrient
Fragrance
Regulatory Lists
artificial_saliva; detected; emissions; Europe; Toys and children's products
active_ingredient; Pesticides
IFRA Transparency
Europe
food_additive; Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS) (2/2019)
consumer_product
active_ingredient; Pesticides
IFRA Transparency
Europe
food_additive; Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS) (2/2019)
consumer_product
inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides
inert_ingredient; Pesticides
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
Cross-Vertical Safety Context
Same-CAS public records found in pharmaceutical data.
SOURCE
ChEMBL / DrugCentral / FAERS
DB_PHARMA CAS match
Pharmaceutical Data
Same-CAS rows from the pharmaceutical spoke database.
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL3183988
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Butyl Lactate allowed in the EU?
Butyl Lactate EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Butyl Lactate do in cosmetics?
Butyl Lactate functions as: Fragrance, Solvent. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 138-22-7.
Is Butyl Lactate used outside cosmetics?
Butyl Lactate also appears in pharmaceutical data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.
Compliance Tools
Check Butyl Lactate compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
Paste a full ingredient list for instant analysis
82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
Check compliance across multiple jurisdictions
MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
Compare limits across jurisdictions
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