1% solutions | TTB: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau

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Important Information About 1% Solutions

The artificial and natural flavors lists identify chemicals that often make a product unfit at 1% by weight. Often, companies will prepare 1% solutions of flavor chemicals for use as components of compounded flavors. It is important to note that compounded flavors containing these 1% solutions are not necessarily unfit. This is because the 1% solution will be combined with other ingredients resulting in a flavor that contains less than the required amount of the particular flavor chemical.

You can use these lists two ways—(1) you can submit a formula for approval of the list of natural materials and another one for the list of artificial materials. You can use these materials in flavors manufactured at your facility and if no additional alcohol is added, you will not have to submit formulas for the products that contain the 1% solution. (2) you can use these materials as a reference for the quantity that will generally make a product unfit for beverage purposes. For example, products containing 1% ethyl butyrate by weight in the absence of a mitigating ingredient (such as sugar), are generally unfit for beverage purposes.

1% Flavor Chemicals

1% by weight @ 95% v/v ethanol
Please note that the chemicals on these lists will make a product unfit (at the prescribed levels) in the absence of masking agents such as sweeteners.

See Flavor Unfitness Worksheet for the 1% flavor chemical lists.

2% Total Flavor Chemicals

2% by weight @ 95% v/v ethanol
% by weight of any combination of materials listed on the 1% list of Artificial Flavor Materials or Natural Flavor Materials is unfit for beverage purposes, even if mitigating materials are present in the formulation.
* All ingredients used for this guideline must be disclosed and quantified.*

Although it is not mandatory, we highly encourage the use of FEMA numbers.

A calculation worksheet based on the above guidelines is available for download. Based on the ethanol content of the flavor, this worksheet will calculate the amount needed of an ingredient, in the appropriate units, to make your product unfit.

Download Calculation Worksheet
Flavor Unfitness Worksheet