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Feb 2, 2026 - Foods

NewsonthecalculationofvitaminEcontentinfoods

The calculation of the vitamin E content in food and dietary supplements will in the future be based on a new scientific standard. Until now, the quantities of various tocopherols – alpha, beta, gamma, and delta tocopherol – were used and combined into a biologically active vitamin E content using special conversion factors.

However, new scientific findings show that only alpha-tocopherol possesses vitamin E activity in the human body. Although other forms of tocopherol are absorbed, they are not present in human plasma and tissue and are not recognized by the body as vitamin E. Against this backdrop, only the alpha-tocopherol content will be used to determine the vitamin E content in the future.

In Germany, the working group “Questions of Nutrition” of the German Chemical Society (GDCh) has already developed corresponding conversion tables, which were published in revised form at the end of last year. The tables reflect the current state of science and serve as an important reference for the evaluation of vitamin contents.

The Tentamus laboratories regularly conduct vitamin analyses and reliably support manufacturers and distributors in the examination of food and dietary supplements. In addition, the experts offer advisory support on questions of analytics, evaluation, and product safety.