EFSA Finds E 962 Safe at Current Exposure Levels

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has completed its re-evaluation of aspartame-acesulfame salt, the sweetener identified as E 962. In its conclusion published on September 10, 2026, EFSA found no safety concern at the current exposure levels assessed across all age groups.

What the assessment covers

E 962 is authorised as a sweetener in various sugar-free or reduced-energy foods and drinks. Its role is to provide sweetness in products made without sugar or with fewer calories, but the EFSA conclusion is about exposure to the substance rather than the nutritional profile of any particular product.

According to EFSA's announcement, the current exposure estimates for aspartame remain below the acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 40 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day for every age group. The corresponding estimate for acesulfame K also remains below its recently revised ADI of 15 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day across all age groups.

Those figures describe the exposure estimates used in the assessment. They do not establish a single amount of a specific food or drink that every individual can consume, because the conclusion was not presented as a product-by-product calculation.

The EU rules still need a technical update

EFSA’s safety conclusion is accompanied by a technical recommendation. Its experts say that the European Union should update the specifications applying to E 962 so that they conform with the specifications for the aspartame and acesulfame K used to produce it.

This recommendation concerns the technical framework for the sweetener. It is separate from the finding on current exposure levels: EFSA has identified no safety concern under the conditions it reviewed, while also pointing to a need to align the relevant EU specifications with those of the two substances involved in production.

What changes for readers

For people who encounter E 962 in sugar-free or reduced-energy foods and drinks, the immediate message is limited but clear. EFSA’s re-evaluation supports the safety of the current authorised use at the exposure levels assessed for the age groups covered by the review.

The assessment does not, on the information available here, establish a broader change to the role of E 962 in food and drink. Nor does it turn the reported ADI comparisons into a personalised consumption recommendation or a universal product limit.

EFSA’s September 10 conclusion therefore delivers a current safety assessment rather than a new usage framework. The follow-up identified in the decision is to bring the European Union specifications for aspartame-acesulfame salt into line with those applying to aspartame and acesulfame K.

Sources

• Official source: efsa.europa.eu
• https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/news/efsa-concludes-salt-aspartame-acesulfame-e-962-safe-current-exposure-levels