Benzaldehyde
Benzaldehyde is a colorless liquid that smells much like almonds or cherries. It is commonly used as in flavors (cherry flavored soft drinks and almond flavoring) and fragrances (cherry almond).
Natural benzaldehyde is produced from several different essential oils, particularly bitter almond oil and wild cherry bark oil, both of which contain 99% benzaldehyde. Synthetic benzaldehyde comes from toluene, benzene, or cinnamaldehyde (obtained from cassia oil). Synthetic benzaldehyde may be called “bitter almond fragrance oil,” or “almond fragrance oil,” “bitter almond (pure benzaldehyde),” or other similar names. Natural benzaldehyde accounts for only about 20% of the total benzaldehyde production and is priced substantially higher than synthetic benzaldehyde.
Safety
Benzaldehyde is classed as GRAS (“generally regarded as safe”) by the FDA for use in food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soap. It is approved as a flavoring without restrictions in the EU.
In the EU, benzaldehyde has been identified as a fragrance allergen. Starting in 2026, it must be listed in the ingredient declaration if it is present at more than 0.001% in a leave-on product or at more than 0.01% in a rinse-off product.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel reviewed benzaldehyde in 2006 and found that it was “safe as used.” At that time, the highest reported use was 0.5%. In 2023, the panel reviewed the earlier assessment along with new information available since 2006 and decided not to re-open the safety assessment. 1
IFRA has benzaldehyde on their restricted list due to the risk of dermal sensitization and systemic toxicity. The restrictions were updated in 2020. When used as a fragrance, the maximum recommended amounts of benzaldehyde by category are:
| 1 | Leave on products applied to lips | 0.045% |
| 2 | Leave on products applied to underarm | 0.014% |
| 3 | Products generally applied to the face using fingertips | 0.27% |
| 4 | Fragrancing products (perfume, toilet water) generally applied to neck, face and wrists | 0.25% |
| 5 | Leave on products applied to the face and body using the hands (palms) | |
| 5-A | Body lotion products applied to the body | 0.064% |
| 5-B | Face moisturizers | 0.064% |
| 5-C | Hand cream products | 0.064% |
| 5-D | Baby creams, baby oils and baby talc | 0.021% |
| 6 | Products with lip and oral exposure | 0.15% |
| 7 | Products applied to the hair with hand contact | |
| 7-A | Hair permanent or other chemical treatments (rinse-off) | 0.52% |
| 7-B | Hair styling aids, dry shampoo, hair treatments (leave-on) | 0.52% |
| 8 | Products with significant anogenital exposure | 0.021% |
| 9 | Rinse off products with body and hand exposure | 0.49% |
| 10 | Household care products with mostly hand contact | |
| 10-A | Soap, cleaning products, fabric softeners | 0.49% |
| 10-B | Sprayed products (air freshener, insecticides) | 1.8% |
| 11 | Products with intended skin contact but minimal transfer of fragrance to skin | |
| 11-A | Diapers, feminine hygiene pads | 0.021% |
| 11-B | Scented socks, paper towels, napkins, toilet paper | 0.021% |
As noted, many essential oils contain benzaldehyde. When using essential oils containing benzaldehyde, you calculate the amount of benzaldehyde in each of the essential oils to determine safe level of the combination.
The following chart, taken from the Natural Complex Substances list compiled by the IFRA, shows the botanical substances known to contain benzaldehyde and the average amount of benzaldehyde contained in each.
| Almond oil, bitter | Prunus amygdalus amara (Bitter Almond) kernel oil | 99% |
| Benzoin infusion, Sumatra | Styrax paralleloneurum Perkins | 0.001% |
| Cajuput oil | Melaleuca leucadendron L. | 0.1% |
| Cassia bark oil | Cinnamomum cassia [L.] J. Presl syn. C. aromaticum Nees | 1.3% |
| Cassia bark oleoresin | Cinnamomum cassia [L.] J. Presl syn. C. aromaticum Nees | 0.95% |
| Cassia oil | Cinnamomum cassia [L.] J. Presl syn. C. aromaticum Nees | 1% |
| Cassie absolute | Vachellia farnesiana (L.) Willd. | 0.3% |
| Cinnamon bark CO2 extract | Cinnamomum verum J. Presl syn. C. zeylanicum Blume | 0.1% |
| Cinnamon bark oil | Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume | 0.2% |
| Cinnamon bark oil, Laos | Cinnamomum loureiroi Nees | 0.5% |
| Cinnamon leaf oil | Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume | 0.16% |
| Cistus absolute | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.6% |
| Cistus concrete | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.6% |
| Cistus oil | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.9% |
| Davana oil | Artemisia pallens Wall. | 0.2% |
| Hyacinth absolute | Hyacinthus orientalis L. | 0.1% |
| Jasmine grandiflorum absolute | 0Jasminum grandiflorum L. | 00.02% |
| Labdanum extract ambreine | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.8% |
| Labdanum gum | Cistus labdanifer L. | 0.2% |
| Labdanum oil | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.38% |
| Labdanum oleoresin | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.2% |
| Labdanum resinoid | Cistus ladaniferus L. | 0.03% |
| Mimosa absolute | Acacia decurrens (Wendl.f.) Willd. | 0.08% |
| Niaouli oil | Melaleuca viridiflora Sol. ex Gaertn. | 0.2% |
| Perilla oil | Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton | 0.33% |
| Rose absolute | Rosa x damascena Mill. | 0.02% |
| Rose concrete | Rosa x damascena Mill. | 0.5% |
| Rose oil | Rosa x damascena Mill. | 0.04% |
| Styrax extract | Liquidambar spp. | 0.05% |
| Styrax oil | Liquidambar styraciflua L. | 0.03% |
| Styrax oil, Honduras | Liquidambar styraciflua L. | 0.1% |
| Styrax oil, pyrogenated | Liquidambar orientalis Mill. | 0.1% |
Restrictions
Benzaldehyde can be (and has been) used as a precursor to make methamphetamine and is deemed a List 1 Chemical (a chemcial that, in addition to ligitimate uses, is important to the manufacture of a controlled substance).
As a result, anyone who wishes to purchases large amounts of benzaldehyde must register with the DEA. Purchases of less than 4kg per month (cumulative) are exempt from registration.2
However, authorized sellers may required identification or documentation of intended use even for smaller amounts.
1 https://www.cir-safety.org/sites/default/files/Benzaldehyde.pdf
2 21 CFR 1310.04(f) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/chapter-II/part-1310#1310.04
