What Is BHT, and Is It Safe in Food?
BHT, or butylated hydroxytoluene, is used as an antioxidant in food to prevent the spoilage of fats and oils, the FDA says. Its food additive regulation allows BHT alone or with BHA in listed foods at set limits, such as 50 parts per million in total in dry breakfast cereals and potato flakes, and its GRAS regulation lists BHT as generally recognized as safe when total antioxidants are not over 0.02 percent of a food’s fat or oil content.
On cancer, a 1979 National Toxicology Program feeding study concluded that under its conditions BHT was not carcinogenic for the rats and mice tested, while reporting lung tumors in low-dose female mice that it said could not clearly be related to BHT. IARC found limited evidence for the carcinogenicity of BHT in experimental animals, said no evaluation could be made for humans, and in a later evaluation listed it in Group 3.
The FDA is taking a fresh look. It lists BHT among select chemicals in the food supply under its review and says it is beginning a post-market assessment of BHT as used in food and food contact materials, and in May 2026 it requested information on current uses and safety data to determine whether BHT remains safe under its current conditions of use.
Sources checked September 15, 2026. Every point below links the page it came from.
The sources behind this answer
- Regulatory filingUnder 21 CFR 172.115, BHT may be used alone or with BHA as an antioxidant in listed foods, with total limits such as 50 parts per million in dry breakfast cereals and potato flakes. eCFR, 21 CFR 172.115 ↗
- Regulatory filingUnder 21 CFR 182.3173, BHT is generally recognized as safe for use in food when total antioxidants are not over 0.02 percent of fat or oil content, used in accordance with good manufacturing practice. eCFR, 21 CFR 182.3173 ↗
- StudyA 1979 National Toxicology Program bioassay concluded that under its conditions BHT was not carcinogenic for F344 rats or B6C3F1 mice, and that lung tumors in low-dose female mice could not clearly be related to BHT. National Toxicology Program, Technical Report 150 ↗
- Government sourceIARC found limited evidence for the carcinogenicity of BHT in experimental animals, said no evaluation could be made for humans, and a later evaluation lists it as Group 3. IARC Monographs Volume 40, via IPCS INCHEM ↗
- Government sourceThe FDA lists BHT among select chemicals in the food supply under its review, and says it is beginning a post-market assessment of the safety of BHT in food and food contact materials. US FDA ↗
- Regulatory filingIn a May 2026 Federal Register notice, the FDA requested information on current uses and safety data for BHT to determine whether it remains safe under its current conditions of use in food. Federal Register, US FDA ↗
Sources checked September 15, 2026. A brand statement is the company’s own claim, which we report but have not verified. Our grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests.