Peanut Butter | whatsinit

About

What it is and where it shows up.

A semi-solid paste produced by grinding dry-roasted peanuts (Arachis hypogaea), with or without added salt, sweeteners, or stabilisers; widely used as a spread, baking ingredient, confection component, and high-protein food. Peanut butter is a standardised whole food, not a food additive, and carries no INS or E number.

Safety summary

The regulatory and scientific consensus.

Peanut butter is nutritionally valuable for the general population but poses a risk of severe IgE-mediated allergic reactions, including potentially fatal anaphylaxis, in peanut-allergic individuals. Aflatoxin contamination — produced by Aspergillus moulds on peanuts — is an IARC Group 1 carcinogen strictly regulated by maximum levels in all major jurisdictions; EFSA concluded exposure should be kept as low as reasonably achievable because aflatoxins are genotoxic and carcinogenic. Salmonella spp. contamination is an additional microbiological hazard because the low water-activity environment of peanut butter significantly impairs standard thermal inactivation methods.

Regulatory landscape

What food-safety regulators have decided.

Jurisdiction	Status	Note
EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) (European Union)	Approved	Peanut butter is permitted as a food. Commission Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006 (as amended) sets a maximum level of 4 µg/kg total aflatoxins for peanuts and processed peanut products intended for direct human consumption. EFSA CONTAM Panel concluded aflatoxins are genotoxic and carcinogenic and that raising the ML to 10 µg/kg would increase cancer risk by a factor of 1.6–1.8.source
FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) (India)	Approved	Regulated under FSS (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations 2011, sub-regulation 2.2.4 (Edible fats), clause 11. The Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) First Amendment Regulations, 2024, gazetted on 25 October 2024, specifically updated product standards for peanut butter.source
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) (United States)	Approved	Standard of identity under 21 CFR §164.150 requires peanut butter to contain ≥90% peanuts with a fat cap of ≤55%; products not meeting this threshold must be labelled 'peanut spread'. Separately, FDA Compliance Policy Guide Sec. 570.375 sets an aflatoxin action level of 20 µg/kg (ppb) total aflatoxins in peanut products, above which the product is deemed adulterated under §402(a)(1) of the FD&C Act.source

Who should approach with care

Whose guidance would steer them away.

Nut Allergy — Peanut is among the most common triggers of severe IgE-mediated food allergy and anaphylaxis; even trace exposure can be fatal in sensitised individuals, and peanut allergy typically persists lifelong.

Infants — Aflatoxin effects are more pronounced in infants and those with compromised immunity per FAO/WHO and EFSA data, and the timing of peanut introduction in infancy to manage allergy risk requires individual medical guidance.

Children — EFSA CONTAM Panel calculated that adolescents and children have the highest aflatoxin dietary exposures from peanut-butter consumption relative to body weight among all age groups.

Liver Disease — Aflatoxin B1 is a potent hepatotoxin and hepatocarcinogen; individuals with pre-existing liver disease or chronic hepatitis B infection face substantially elevated cancer risk from even low-level aflatoxin exposure.

Pregnancy — Aflatoxins have demonstrated mutagenic and potential teratogenic effects in animal models, and regulatory bodies recommend minimising dietary exposure to genotoxic carcinogens during pregnancy.

Research citations

The sources behind this verdict.

1FDA. Compliance Policy Guide Sec. 570.375 — Aflatoxins in Peanuts and Peanut Products. fda.gov
2FDA. 21 CFR Part 164.150 — Peanut Butter (Standard of Identity). accessdata.fda.gov
3EFSA. Aflatoxins in food — EFSA topic page and comprehensive risk assessment (CONTAM Panel Opinion 2020). efsa.europa.eu
4PubMed. Peanut Butter Food Safety Concerns — Prevalence, Mitigation and Control of Salmonella spp. and Aflatoxins in Peanut Butter. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
5FSSAI. Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) First Amendment Regulations, 2024 — Peanut Butter, FRK, Oligofructose, 2024. fssai.gov.in
6EFSA. Effect on public health of a possible increase of the maximum level for 'aflatoxin total' from 4 to 10 µg/kg in peanuts and processed products thereof, intended for direct human consumption or use as an ingredient in foodstuffs, 2018.

Independently researched6 citations