Ascorbic acid is vitamin C, the antioxidant on a thousand labels. It is built from glucose, which is about as plant-based as a starting material gets.
Made fromGlucose (plant sugar)
E numberE300
VerdictVegan
Where it hides
Fortified juices and foods
Cured and processed foods (antioxidant)
Supplements
Flour and baked goods
What it is
Ascorbic acid is vitamin C, used both as a nutrient and as an antioxidant that stops foods browning and going rancid. Its production route is plant-based:
Primary source 01 / 01
Vitamin C can be produced from glucose by two main routes.
Both the older and the modern industrial routes start from glucose, a plant sugar, and use fermentation and chemistry to reach vitamin C. There is no animal input, so ascorbic acid and its salts, the ascorbates, are vegan. It is one of the additives you can wave through.
Citric acid (E330)Citric acid is the sour note in half the pantry. It is grown by a mould on sugar, which is a lot less glamorous than lemons and just as vegan.
Tocopherols (vitamin E, E306 to E309)Tocopherols are vitamin E, added to keep oils from going rancid. They are pressed from vegetable oil, so the antioxidant itself is plant-based.
Glycine (E640)Glycine is the simplest amino acid, sold as a sweetish additive and supplement. The commercial version is synthesised in a factory, not boiled out of an animal.
Frequently asked
Is E300 vegan?
Yes. E300 is ascorbic acid, vitamin C, made from glucose, so it is vegan.
Is vitamin C ever from animals?
No. Commercial vitamin C is produced from glucose by fermentation and chemistry, not from animals, so it is vegan.
The sources
What each verdict rests on. Read them yourself.
Vitamin C · Wikipedia, 2025 · encyclopedia overview
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