Other Fruit Extracts

About

What it is and where it shows up.

"Other fruit extracts" is a broad category encompassing concentrated or isolated bioactive compounds obtained from various fruits through physical, aqueous, or solvent-based extraction processes, used in foods, nutraceuticals, and supplements as flavourings, colorants, sweeteners, antioxidants, or functional ingredients. Individual members of this category — such as monk fruit extract, bitter orange extract, or Hovenia dulcis extract — are evaluated and regulated separately by food safety authorities.

Safety summary

The regulatory and scientific consensus.

The safety profile of fruit extracts varies widely depending on the source fruit, extraction method, and intended concentration of use; most common fruit extracts derived from recognised food-grade fruits are considered safe for the general adult population when used at food-appropriate levels. Specific extracts such as monk fruit (Luo Han Guo) have been subject to formal EFSA safety reviews noting some unresolved questions around metabolite genotoxicity at high concentrations, while others like certain kiwi, passion fruit, and cashew fruit extracts have been flagged by FSSAI as requiring further review before health claims can be made. No universal ADI has been established for the category as a whole; individual ADIs, where they exist, are set on a substance-by-substance basis.

Regulatory landscape

What food-safety regulators have decided.

Jurisdiction	Status	Note
EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) (European Union)	Restricted	Under EU Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, only fruit extracts explicitly listed in Annex II (the Union list) may be used as food additives. Novel or unlisted fruit extracts require a formal authorisation procedure under Regulation (EC) No 1331/2008. Individual extracts (e.g. monk fruit / LHG extract) are evaluated separately by EFSA. Extracts not yet authorised as food additives but derived from traditional food fruits may still be used as flavourings or novel foods under separate frameworks.source
FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) (India)	Restricted	Under FSSAI Health Supplements & Nutraceuticals Regulations, fruits and vegetables listed in the Indian Food Composition Tables (NIN/ICMR) may be used as such or as processed ingredients including extracts in supplements/nutraceuticals. However, specific health benefit claims require prior FSSAI approval. FSSAI has separately asked Food Business Operators to discontinue use of certain extracts (e.g. kiwi fruit, passion fruit, cashew fruit extracts) as health supplements pending further safety review, though use in conventional food products was not prohibited.source
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) (United States)	Approved	Many fruit extracts used as flavourings, colorants, or functional ingredients in conventional food are considered GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) in the US, provided they are derived from recognized safe food-grade fruits and used at appropriate levels. Novel fruit extracts intended for use as food additives (e.g. Siraitia grosvenorii fruit extract / SGFE as a sweetener) are evaluated through the GRAS Notice procedure; FDA has not questioned GRAS conclusions for several such extracts under intended conditions of use.source

Who should approach with care

Whose guidance would steer them away.

Infants — FSSAI regulations specify that nutraceutical products containing fruit extracts intended for children aged 2–5 years should only be given under medical advice by a physician, certified dietician, or nutritionist, reflecting uncertainty about appropriate dosing and safety in very young children.

Pregnancy — Concentrated or novel fruit extracts used in supplements and nutraceuticals have not been uniformly studied for safety in pregnancy; regulatory guidance (FSSAI, EFSA novel food framework) recommends specific safety evaluation before use in vulnerable populations, and consumers should consult a doctor before using concentrated fruit extract supplements during pregnancy.

Other — Individuals with known fruit allergies (e.g. to citrus, kiwi, or stone fruits) should exercise caution with concentrated extracts of the corresponding fruit, as allergenic proteins may be retained or concentrated during extraction, though the specific risk varies widely by extract type and processing method.

Research citations

The sources behind this verdict.

1FDA. Aspartame and Other Sweeteners in Food — Siraitia grosvenorii Fruit Extract (SGFE). fda.gov
2FSSAI. FSSAI Compendium: Food Safety and Standards (Health Supplements, Nutraceuticals, Foods for Special Dietary Use, Foods for Special Medical Purpose, Functional Foods and Novel Foods) Regulations, 2021. fssai.gov.in
3EFSA. Safety of hot water extract of fruits and peduncles of Hovenia dulcis as a novel food pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2015/2283, 2020. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
4EFSA. Safety of use of Monk fruit extract as a food additive in different food categories, 2019. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
5FSSAI. FSSAI News: FSSAI prohibits use of 14 ingredients under Nutraceutical Regulations, 2018. fssai.gov.in

Independently researched5 citations