Nisin

Study type not stated

• Open question

  Gut bacteria and health²

  Nisin is a food preservative, and scientists are studying whether it can change gut bacteria.

How it’s made and used

• Food preservatives³

  Nisin has been used as a preservative in food, and researchers are still studying how it is made and used.

• Stopping germ growth⁴

  Nisin is added to dairy foods to stop germs like Listeria and Staphylococcus aureus from growing.

• Sausage shelf life⁵

  Nisin, added with another germ-fighter, kept Calabresa sausages from spoiling as fast at room temperature.

• Germ-fighting power in meat⁶

  Nisin loses its germ-fighting power faster in raw meat than in cooked meat, and scientists now know why.

• Bacteria in food⁷

  Nisin fights bacteria in food, and also works on bacteria living in slimy layers called biofilms.

• Meat shelf life⁸

  Nisin, with tea polyphenols and chitosan, kept chilled mutton fresh longer in lab tests.

• Meat spoilage bacteria⁹

  Nisin slows some meat bacteria, but not all, so it may not stop meat spoiling on its own.

• Salt in fermented bean paste¹⁰

  In lab studies, adding Nisin with a salt substitute to Pixian douban cut salt and boosted umami and aroma.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.

Expert panels that weigh all the research. Shown for context: the signal at the top does not count them.

• UN and WHO food additive experts (JECFA), 2024

  Acceptable daily intake: up to 2 mg per kg of body weight.