Authorization for Use as Food Additives (Calcium Acetate and Calcium Oxide) 
 
The government of Japan will designate Calcium Acetate and Calcium Oxide as authorized food 
additives. 
 
Summary  
Under Article 10 of the Food Sanitation Law, food additives may not be used marketed without the 
authorization by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. Where standards for use of additives 
and/or their compositional specifications are esta blished based on Article 11 of the law, those 
additives may not be used or marketed when they do not meet these standards and/or specifications.   
In response to a request from th e Minister of Health, Labour an d Welfare, the Committee on Food 
Additives of the Food Sanitation Council that is established under the Pharmaceutical Affairs and 
Food Sanitation Council has discussed the adequ acy of the designation of Calcium Acetate and 
Calcium Oxide as food additives. The conclusion of the committee is outlined below.    
Outline of conclusion 
 
The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, based on Article 10 of the Food Sanitation Law, should 
designate Calcium Acetate and Calcium Oxide, as food additives unlikely to harm human health, and establish standard for use and compositional specifications, based on Article 11 of the law (see Attachments 1 and 2).     Attachment 1 
 
Calcium Acetate  
 
 
COO-
2Ca2+•n H 2O H3C
 
        n = 1 or 0 
 
Standard for use  
Not established.  
 
Compositional specifications  
Substance name  Calcium Acetate       
Molecular formula   C 4H6CaO 4•nH 2O (n＝1 or 0) 
Mol. Weight   176.18 (monohydrate), 158.17 (anhydrous)  
Chemical name [CAS number]    
Calcium acetate monohydrate [5743-26-0] 
Calcium acetate [62-54-4] 
Content Calcium Acetate, when dried, contains not less than 98.0% of calcium acetate (C 4H6CaO 4). 
Description  Calcium Acetate occurs as hy groscopic white crystals or white granules or powder. It 
has a slight odor of acetic acid.       
Identification    
Calcium Acetate responds to all tests for Calcium Salt and Acetate in the Qualitative Tests.   
Purity    
(1) pH  6.0−9.0 (2.0 g, water 20 ml). 
(2) W ater-insoluble substances   Not more than 0.3 %. 
Weigh accurately a crucible-type glass filter (1G4), previously dried at 105ºC for 30 minutes 
and cooled in a desiccators. Weigh accurately abou t 10 g of Calcium Acetate, add 100 ml of warm 
water, and agitate. Filter it through the glass filter , and wash the residue on the filter with 30 ml of 
water. Dry the filter containing the residue at 105 ºC for 2 hours, cool in desiccators, and weigh accurately.       
(3) Lead
  Not more than 2.0 g/g as Pb. 
Test Solution  Weigh 2.0 g of Calcium Acetate into a 100-ml beaker, add 20 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 4), and dissolve it by ultrasonic agitation. Evaporate to dryness, and dissolve the residue in 20 ml of water. Use the resulting solution as the sample solution. To the sample solution, add 50 ml of a solution of diammonium hydrogen citrate (1 in 2), then add ammonia solution until the color of the solution changes to yellow-green using 1 ml of thymol blue as the 
indicator. Transfer the resulting solution into a 200-ml separating funnel, wash the beaker with water, add the washings to the funnel, and make about 100 ml. To this solution, add 5 ml of a solution of ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (3 in 100), and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Add exactly 10 ml of butyl acetate, agitate for 5 minutes, and allow to stand.  Use the butyl acetate layer as the test 
solution.  
Control Solution   Measure exactly 1 ml of Lead Standard Stock Solution, and add water to 
make exactly 100 ml. Measure exactly  4 ml of this solution, and pr oceed in the same manner as for 
the sample solution.     
Procedure   Proceed as directed in Method 1 in the Lead Limit Test. 
(4) Arsenic
  Not more than 4.0 g/g as  As 2O3  (0.50 g, Method 1, Apparatus B).       
(5) Readily oxidizable substances   Not more than 1000 g/g as HCOOH. 
Weigh accurately about 5 g of Calcium Acetate, dissolve in 100 ml of water, add 0.5 g of 
anhydrous sodium carbonate, and shake. Add exactly 10 ml of 0.02 mol/L potassium permanganate, shake, and heat on a water bath for 15 minutes. After cooling, add 25 ml of diluted sulfuric acid (9 in 100) and 0.3 g of potassium iodide, shake well, and titrate with 0.1 mol/L sodium thiosulfate (indicator: starch TS).  When the color of the solution becomes yellowish white near the endpoint, add 3 ml of starch TS. The end point is when the solution is decolored. Separately, perform a blank test. Calculate the content of readily oxidizable substances (HCOOH) by the formula:   
 Content ሺ μg/gሻof readily oxidizable substances ൌ  
ሺaെbሻൈ2301
Weight of the sample 
 
a= volume (ml) of 0.1 mol/L sodium thiosulfate consumed in the blank test, 
b= volume (ml) of 0.1 mol/L sodium thiosulfate consumed in the test. 
Loss on Drying  Not more than 11.0% (155ºC, constant weight) 
Assay  
Weigh accurately about 4 g of Calcium Acetate, previously dried, dissolve in 30 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 4), add water to make exactly 250 ml. Using this solution as the test solution, proceed as directed in Method 1 under Calcium Salt Determination. 
Each ml of 0.05mol/L EDTA = 7.908 mg of C
4H6CaO 4 
  Attachment 2 
 
Calcium Oxide  
 
 
Standard for use  
Not established.  
 
Compositional specifications  
Substance name  Calcium Oxide       
Molecular formula   C a O  
Mol. Weight   56.08   
Chemical name [CAS number]    
Calcium oxide [1305-78-8] 
Content  Calcium Oxide, when ignited, contains not less than 95.0% of calcium oxide (CaO). 
Description   Calcium Oxide occurs as a white to light gray powder, granules, or lumps.      
Identification    
(1) When moistened with water, 1 g of Calcium Oxide generates heat. To this, add 5 ml of 
water. The resulting suspension is alkaline. 
(2) To 1 g of Calcium Oxide, add 20 ml of water, and add acetic acid dropwise until the 
precipitate dissolves. The resulting solution responds to all tests for Calcium Salt in the Qualitative Tests. 
Purity    
(1) Hydrochloric acid insoluble substances  Not more than 1.0%.  
Weigh accurately a crucible-type glass filter (1G4), previously dried at 105ºC for 30 minutes 
and cooled in a desiccators. Weigh 5.0 g of Calcium Oxide, moisten with water, and add 100 ml of water. Add hydrochloric acid dropwise while shaking until the sample no longer dissolves, and boil. After cooling, add hydrochloric acid if necessary to  make the mixture acidic. Filter it through the 
glass filter, wash the residue on the filter with water until the washings are free of chloride. Dry the filter containing the residue at 105 ºC for 1 hour, cool in desiccators, and weigh accurately.   
(2) Fluoride  Not more than 150 g/g as F.  
Test Solution   Weigh 0.10 g of Calcium Oxide into a beaker, and dissolve it in 10 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 10). Heat this solution, boil for 1 minute, transfer into a polyethylene beaker, and immediately cool in ice.  Add 15 ml of sodium citrate solution (1 in 4) and 10 ml of a solution of disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (1 in 40), and mix it. Then, adjust the pH to 5.4 −5.6 with 
diluted hydrochloric acid (1 in 10) or sodium hy droxide solution (2 in 5). Transfer the resulting 
solution into a 100-ml measuring flask, and dilute  with water to volume. Transfer 50 ml of this solution into a polyethylene beaker.    
Control Solution  Measure exactly 5 ml of Fluoride Ion Standard Stock Solution into a 
1000-ml measuring flask, and dilute with water to vo lume. Transfer exactly 3 ml of this solution into 
a polyethylene beaker, add 15 ml of sodium citrate solution (1 in 4) and 10 ml of a solution of disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (1 in 40), and mix it. Then, adjust the pH to 5.4 −5.6 with 
diluted hydrochloric acid (1 in 4) or sodium hy droxide solution (2 in 5). Transfer the resulting 
solution into a 100-ml measuring flask, and dilute  with water to volume. Transfer 50 ml of this 
solution into a polyethylene beaker.          
Procedure  Measure the potential of the test solution and the control solution using a 
potentiometer connected to a reference electrode and a fluoride ion electrode. The potential of the 
test solution is not less than that of the control solution.     
(3) Lead  Not more than 2.0 g/g as Pb. 
Test Solution  Weigh 2.0 g of Calcium Acetate into a 100-ml beaker, add 20 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 4) little by little, and dissolve by ultrasonic agitation. Evaporate to dryness, and dissolve the residue in 20 ml of water. Use the resulting solution as the sample solution. To the sample solution, add 50 ml of a solution of diammonium hydrogen citrate (1 in 2), then add ammonia solution until the color of the solution changes to yellow-green using 1 ml of thymol blue as the indicator. Transfer the resulting solution into  a 200-ml separating funnel, wash the beaker with 
water, add the washings to the separating funnel, and make about 100 ml. To this solution, add 5 ml of a solution of ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (3 in 100), and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Add exactly 10 ml of butyl acetate, agitate for 5 minutes, and allow to stand.  Use the butyl acetate 
layer as the test solution.     
Control Solution   Measure exactly 1 ml of Lead Standard Stock Solution, and add water to 
make exactly 100 ml. Measure exactly  4 ml of this solution, and pr oceed in the same manner as for 
the sample solution.     
Procedure   Proceed as directed in Method 1 in the Lead Limit Test. 
(4)  Alkali metals and magnesium  Not more than 3.6%. 
Weigh about 0.5 g of Calcium Oxide, dissolve by adding 30 ml of water and 15 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 4), and boil for 1 minute. Immediately add 40 ml of oxalic acid solution (3 in 50), agitate, and neutralize with ammonia solution.  Heat this solution on a water bath for 1 hour, cool, and add water to make 100 ml. Mix well, and filter. Transfer 50 ml of the filtrate into a platinum crucible, previously ignited at 800°C for 30 minutes, cooled in a desiccator , and weighed 
accurately. Evaporate with 0.5 ml of sulfuric acid, ignite at 800°C to constant weight, and weigh the 
crucible containing the residue to determine the weight of the residue.                
(5) Barium  Not more than 300 g /g as Ba.  
    Test Solution   Weigh accurately about 1.0 g of Calciu m Oxide, add diluted hydrochloric acid (1 in 10) to dissolve, and make exactly 50 ml. Measure exactly 5 ml of this solution, and add diluted 
nitric acid (1 in 150) to make exactly 100 ml.  
Control Solution  Measure exactly 1 ml of Barium Standard Solution, and add diluted nitric 
acid (1 in 150) to make exactly 1000 ml.  Measure exactly 30 ml of this solution, and add diluted nitric acid (1 in 150) to make exactly 100 ml.    
Procedure  Proceed as directed in Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometry. 
The emission intensity of the test solution is not more than that of the control solution.    
(6) Arsenic  Not more than 4.0 g/g as  As
2O. 
Test Solution   Weigh 0.50 g of Calcium Oxide, and dissolve in 8 ml of diluted hydrochloric 
acid (1 in 4). 
Apparatus   Use Apparatus B. 
Loss on Ignition  Not more than 10.0 % (800 °C, constant weight ). 
Assay   
Weigh accurately about 1.5 g of Calcium Oxide, previously ignited, dissolve in 30 ml of diluted 
hydrochloric acid (1 in 4), and add water to make exactly 250 ml. Using the resulting solution as the test solution, proceed as directed under Method 1 in Calcium Determination.     
Each ml of 0.05 mol/L EDTA = 2.804 mg of CaO 
 
Regents and Solutions 
 
Fluoride Ion Standard Stock Solution   Weigh 2.210 g of sodium fluoride, previously dried at 
110°C for 2 hours, into a polyethylene beaker, add water 200 ml, and dissolve while stirring. 
Transfer this solution into a 1000 ml of measuring flask, and dilute with water to volume.  Each ml of this solution contains 1 mg of fluorin e (F). Store in a polyethylene container.