Pet Safety / Compounds / Patulin

Is Patulin safe for dogs and cats?

High risk for pets

Patulin is acutely toxic (GHS Category 1-3). Dogs may access through household exposure. Contact veterinarian immediately if exposure suspected.

What is patulin?

The IUPAC name is 4-hydroxy-4,6-dihydrofuro[3,2-c]pyran-2-one.

Also known as: 4-hydroxy-4,6-dihydrofuro[3,2-c]pyran-2-one, Clavacin, Clavatin, Expansine.

IUPAC name
4-hydroxy-4,6-dihydrofuro[3,2-c]pyran-2-one
CAS number
149-29-1
Molecular formula
C7H6O4
Molecular weight
154.12 g/mol
SMILES
C1C=C2C(=CC(=O)O2)C(O1)O
PubChem CID
4696

Risk for dogs

High risk

Patulin is acutely toxic (GHS Category 1-3). Dogs may access through household exposure. Contact veterinarian immediately if exposure suspected.

Risk for cats

High risk

Patulin is acutely toxic (GHS Category 1-3). Cats are particularly vulnerable due to grooming behavior and glucuronidation deficiency.

Regulatory consensus

3 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Patulin. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
EPA CTX / IARC—Group 3 - Not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: negative (Ames: negative, 5 positive / 3 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: negative (Ames: negative, 5 positive / 3 negative reports)

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where pets encounter patulin

  • Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
  • Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Patulin:

  • Prevention (storage and agricultural practices)
    Trade-offs: Zero point-of-use emissions; shifts emissions to power generation (grid-dependent); lower operating cost; higher capital cost; infrastructure requirements (charging, grid capacity); rapidly improving economics.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

Is patulin safe for pets?

Patulin is acutely toxic (GHS Category 1-3). Dogs may access through household exposure. Contact veterinarian immediately if exposure suspected.

What products contain patulin?

Patulin appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments).

Why do regulators disagree about patulin?

Patulin has been classified by 3 agencies including EPA CTX / IARC, EPA CTX / Genetox, EPA CTX / Genetox, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See Patulin in the pets app

Look up products containing patulin, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in pets View raw API data

Sources (3)
  1. EFSA Panel on Contaminants: Risks to Human Health from Patulin in Food (Scientific Opinion) (2018) — regulatory
  2. WHO JECFA Safety Evaluation of Certain Contaminants in Food: Patulin (1995) — regulatory
  3. Codex Alimentarius Commission: Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Patulin Contamination in Apple Juice (2003) — regulatory

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →