# Food and feed additives: Feedstocks

How maize, soy and palm oil become food additives

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/feedstocks/

What this tab covers What it is made from and what it feeds: the raw materials and energy per tonne with their share of cost (linked to the commodity table), who is low-cost and why, and the chemicals made from it.

Most of the family is made from farm commodities: maize and cassava starch and glucose, soybean and palm oil, sugar, seaweed and citrus peel. Petrochemicals feed methionine, benzoates, sorbates and synthetic vitamins. Feedstock prices pass through to commodity additives (starch, lecithin, lysine) within months; specialty additives are less exposed.

#### Inputs per tonne

| Input | Quantity per tonne | Role | Share of cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Mz Maize](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/) | roughly 2 t glucose per t lysine (indicative) | starches, sweeteners and fermentation sugar | the main cost for lysine and starch (indicative) | maize tile; indicative |
| [Soy Soybeans](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/soybeans/) | lecithin about 1-3% of crude soybean oil (indicative) | emulsifiers | not published | soybeans tile |
| [PO Palm oil](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/palm_oil/) | not published | mono- and diglycerides and other emulsifiers | not published | palm oil tile |
| [Su Sugar](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/sugar/) | not published | fermentation feedstock and sucralose base | not published | indicative |
| [Gas Natural gas](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/natural_gas/) | not published | acrolein, HCN and methyl mercaptan for methionine | not published | indicative |

#### Who is low-cost, and why

Chinese fermentation plants with cheap maize and coal power are lowest cost for lysine and threonine; US Corn Belt mills for starch and sweeteners; integrated European and Chinese methionine plants with captive HCN and acrolein. Specialty enzymes and cultures compete on strain technology, not feedstock.

#### Raw materials on the commodity table
[Mz Maize](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/)[Soy Soybeans](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/soybeans/)

#### What it is made into

| Product | Note |
|---|---|
| [Lys Amino acids (lysine, methionine)](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/amino_acids/) | feed amino acids are a sub-family |
| [Vit Vitamins](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/vitamins/) | feed and food vitamins |
| [Enz Industrial enzymes](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/enzymes/) | food and feed enzymes |
| [Cit Citric acid](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/citric_acid/) | acidulant and preservative |
| [Str Starch and cellulose derivatives](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/starch_derivatives/) | modified starches and sweeteners |

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/production/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/food_additives/links/index.md)