Cardamom Seed Oil | whatsinit

About

What it is and where it shows up.

Cardamom seed oil is a volatile essential oil steam-distilled from the dried seeds of Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton, a member of the ginger (Zingiberaceae) family native to South Asia. It is used in food, beverages, confectionery, and meat products as a natural flavouring agent to impart warm, spicy, and aromatic notes characteristic of cardamom.

Safety summary

The regulatory and scientific consensus.

Cardamom seed oil is broadly considered safe at typical food-use concentrations and has a well-established history of consumption as a spice-derived natural flavouring. EFSA's 2019 FEEDAP opinion concluded it poses no adverse effect on animal health, consumer safety, or the environment at regulatory use levels. At concentrated (undiluted) industrial form, the EU safety data sheet identifies hazards of skin irritation, eye irritation, and potential allergic skin reactions, posing risk primarily to handlers rather than consumers.

Regulatory landscape

What food-safety regulators have decided.

Jurisdiction	Status	Note
EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) (European Union)	Approved	Authorised as a sensory additive (flavouring compound) in animal feed under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1098 at up to 5 mg/kg feed. For food use, permitted as a flavouring preparation under Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 without requiring separate evaluation, provided scientific evidence does not indicate a safety risk and consumer is not misled. Protective measures required for handlers of the undiluted concentrate.source
FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) (India)	Approved	Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) is a recognised permitted spice under FSS (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, Chapter 2.9. Its essential oil is recognised as a natural flavouring derived from a permitted food ingredient; no specific ADI or maximum use level is separately established for the oil.source
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) (United States)	Approved	Listed as GRAS under 21 CFR 182.20 (essential oils, oleoresins, and natural extractives). Also listed in FDA's Substances Added to Food (EAFUS) inventory as a flavouring substance bearing FEMA No. 2241. Use permitted at GMP levels in food.source

Who should approach with care

Whose guidance would steer them away.

Other — Industrial handlers of undiluted cardamom oil concentrate face hazards of skin irritation, eye irritation, and allergic skin reactions as identified in the EU safety data sheet reviewed under Regulation (EU) 2020/1098; appropriate personal protective equipment is mandated for occupational users.

Infants — Concentrated essential oils, including cardamom oil, should not be administered directly to infants; while dietary exposure through normally flavoured foods is generally considered acceptable, no specific paediatric safety data exists for direct high-dose use.

Pregnancy — High-dose or supplement-level use of cardamom essential oil during pregnancy is traditionally advised with caution due to limited clinical safety data at non-culinary doses, though use as a food flavouring at normal culinary concentrations is widely considered acceptable.

Research citations

The sources behind this verdict.

1FDA. Cardamom Seed, Oil (Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton) — Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS). hfpappexternal.fda.gov
2other. Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1098 of 24 July 2020 — authorisation of cardamom essential oil as a sensory feed additive, 2020. eur-lex.europa.eu
3EFSA. Safety and efficacy of an essential oil from Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton when used as a sensory additive in feed for all animal species, 2019. efsa.europa.eu
4PubMed. Safety and efficacy of an essential oil from Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton when used as a sensory additive in feed for all animal species (PMC full text), 2019. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
5FSSAI. Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011 — Chapter 2.9: Salt, Spices, Condiments and Related Products, 2011. fssai.gov.in

Independently researched5 citations