Titanium dioxide is the color the food industry lists as E171. In our table it is high risk: it takes 30 points off the additive subscore, which is worth a third of a product's score (about 10 of the 100).
- The key finding, from EFSA: 'E171 can no longer be considered as safe when used as a food additive'; a concern for genotoxicity of TiO2 particles cannot be ruled out; an ADI cannot be established (10.2903/j.efsa.2021.6585)
- No child flag. The class, and the points it costs, are the same for a child of any age.
- Where you meet it. It turns up in 3 of the 10,000 packaged foods scanned most on Open Food Facts. Nine in ten of those foods are sold in Europe (counted 26 Sep 2026).
- 4 citations from EFSA, EU law, IARC and OEHHA, each one below.
What Titanium dioxide does to a score
A packaged food's additive subscore starts at 100 and loses points for each additive on the label; that subscore is a third of the final score. Titanium dioxide takes 30 points off the additive subscore, which is worth a third of a product's score (about 10 of the 100). Scan the pack in Sito and the score you get is the one for your own child's age, with this additive named in the reasons. How we score has the whole method.
See what is in your own cupboard
Scan a packaged food and Sito names the additives in it, then scores the product out of 100 for your child's age.
What the sources found
Every classification in our table comes from the citations below, and nothing else. Each finding is our one-line summary of what the source concluded, with the source and reference beside it.
-
EFSA
10.2903/j.efsa.2021.6585
'E171 can no longer be considered as safe when used as a food additive'; a concern for genotoxicity of TiO2 particles cannot be ruled out; an ADI cannot be established. -
EU law
Commission Regulation (EU) 2022/63 (adopted 2022-01-14)
Authorisation to use titanium dioxide as a food additive withdrawn across the EU. -
IARC
Monographs Vol. 93 (2010), titanium dioxide
Group 2B (possibly carcinogenic to humans) - scoped to airborne, unbound particles of respirable size, i.e. the inhalation route, not dietary exposure. -
OEHHA
Prop 65, titanium dioxide (airborne, unbound particles of respirable size), listed 2011; NSRLs effective 2025-10-01
Prop 65 listing covers only the airborne respirable form; it does not reach titanium dioxide bound in food.
Why this class
IARC Group 1 or 2A with a dietary exposure route; or EFSA has withdrawn or negated a safety conclusion; or EFSA’s own exposure assessment finds a child age group exceeding the ADI at mean intake; or the substance is banned or formally being phased out for food use by the EU, by the US FDA, or under a US state law.
Our confidence in this row's classification is high. Medium or low does not mean the evidence is weak; it means something about the row is still being pinned down, usually a regulatory status confirmed from one source rather than two.
Questions parents ask
Is Titanium dioxide (E171) safe for kids?
High risk. In Sito it takes 30 points off the additive subscore, which is worth a third of a product's score (about 10 of the 100). The finding we rely on: 'E171 can no longer be considered as safe when used as a food additive'; a concern for genotoxicity of TiO2 particles cannot be ruled out; an ADI cannot be established (EFSA, 10.2903/j.efsa.2021.6585).
What is E171?
E171 is the E number for Titanium dioxide, a color. Open Food Facts tags it en:e171.
Next to it on the label
The E numbers either side of E171 in our table, then the closest colors by number.
- Lutein (E161b), low risk, flagged for young children
- Beetroot red (E162), no risk identified
- Anthocyanins (E163), no risk identified
- Calcium carbonates (E170), no risk identified
- Iron oxides and hydroxides (E172), moderate risk
- Aluminium (E173), moderate risk, flagged for young children