Citric Acid in Grocery Products
Citric Acid is an MRT 176 panel substance found in 7,950 of the 20,682 products in our database. Here's every product we've analyzed that contains it.
Risk Distribution
How products containing Citric Acid break down by total trigger count:
Citric acid is one of 27 chemical additives tested on the MRT 176 panel, and it is by far the most prevalent. We found it in 38% of all grocery products in our database — that’s nearly 8,000 items.
While citric acid occurs naturally in citrus fruits, the citric acid used in food manufacturing is almost exclusively produced through Aspergillus niger fermentation of corn sugar. This means manufactured citric acid may trigger reactions in people sensitive to corn as well as those sensitive to citric acid itself.
Citric acid is used as a preservative, pH adjuster, and flavor enhancer. It appears in beverages, canned goods, condiments, snacks, and even some fresh-cut produce. If citric acid is on your Red list, finding packaged food without it is one of the biggest challenges of the LEAP protocol.
Related Reading
- What Does “Natural Flavors” Actually Mean? — Citric acid is often hidden inside “natural flavors”
- Products with the fewest MRT triggers overall
All Products Containing Citric Acid — Page 101 of 318
| Product | Triggers | LEAP Phase |
|---|---|---|
|
Del Monte Foods Inc. — Del Monte, Zucchini with Italian Style Tomato Sauce
Zucchini, Tomato, Cane Sugar, Onion, Celery, Corn, Citric Acid, Garlic
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. — Cranberry Diet Sparkling Juice Drink From Concentrate, Cranberry
Cranberry, Tea, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Bj's Wholesale Club / Corporate Brands — Dried Blueberries
Blueberry, Cane Sugar, Citric Acid, Sunflower
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Conagra Brands — Black Raspberry Topping, Wide-mouth Jug, 123 Oz
Cane Sugar, Raspberry, Corn, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Campbell Soup Company — V8 V-fusion Beverage Pomegranate Blueberry
Sweet Potato, Carrot, Apple, Blueberry, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
General Mills Sales Inc. — Old El Paso Mild Chopped Green Chiles
Chili Pepper, Capsaicin, Solanine, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Tribe Mediterranean Foods, Inc. — Tribe, Forty Spices Hummus
Canola/Rapeseed, Sesame, Citric Acid, Cane Sugar, Onion, Garlic, Tomato
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. — Ocean Spray, Wave, Apple White Cranberry Juice Drink, Mango Pineapple with White Cranberries
Cane Sugar, Beet, Apple, Cranberry, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Dole Packaged Foods Company — Dole, Mandarin Oranges in 100% Fruit Juice
Orange, Pineapple, Lemon, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Del Monte Foods Inc. — Fruit & Veggie Fusions
Apple, Pear, Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, Squash, Cane Sugar, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
The Dannon Company, Inc. — Smoothie Max
Cow's Milk, Yogurt, Cane Sugar, Corn, Whey, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
The Dannon Company, Inc. — Triple Zero Nonfat Blended Greek Yogurt
Cow's Milk, Yogurt, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Mott's Llp — Juice Beverage
Apple, Grape, Cherry, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
The Minute Maid Company — Minute Maid, Light Mango Passion Fruit Drink
Mango, Apple, Citric Acid, Fructose, Corn, Aspartame
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Oscar Mayer Foods Corp. — Deli-style Wholes
Cucumber, Garlic, Citric Acid, Mustard, Chili Pepper, Polysorbate 80
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Dole Packaged Foods, Llc — Diced Pears in Water Sweetened with Stevia & Monk Fruit Extracts
Pear, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 2 — Reintroduction |
|
Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. — Apples & Cinnamon Flavored Sugar Free Instant Oatmeal, Apples & Cinnamon
Oat, Cinnamon, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Nestle Waters North America Inc. — Iced Tea, Peach
Fructose, Corn, Citric Acid, Tea, Benzoic Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Kellogg Company Us — Kellogg Fruit Pieces Disney Disney Cars 17.6oz
Corn, Cane Sugar, Apple, Citric Acid, FD&C Yellow #5, FD&C Red #40, Blue #1
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Frito-Lay Company — LIME PLANTAIN CHIPS, LIME
Corn, Canola/Rapeseed, Sunflower, Citric Acid, Cane Sugar, Lime
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Campbell Soup Company — V8 Splash Beverage Carrot Orange
Carrot, Fructose, Corn, Apple, Orange, Pineapple, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Hormel Foods Corporation — THICK & CHUNKY SALSA
Tomato, Onion, Chili Pepper, Corn, Garlic, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
The Coca-cola Company-0049000000016 — Minute Maid Premium Peach (nc) Carton, 59 Fl Oz
Fructose, Corn, Cane Sugar, Apple, Peach, Citric Acid, Benzoic Acid, FD&C Red #40, FD&C Yellow #5
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Maynards Bassetts Berties Mix Candy
Corn, Wheat, Cane Sugar, Citric Acid, Paprika, Turmeric, Coconut
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
|
Unilever — TAZO, WHITE TEA & CRANBERRY JUICE BEVERAGE FROM CONCENTRATE
Tea, Cane Sugar, Cranberry, Apple, Grape, Citric Acid
|
6 | Phase 3 — Practitioner Guided |
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