Ammonium chloride is a white or colorless crystalline salt or white granular powder. It is odorless and has a bitter, salty taste. Food grade ammonium chloride has multiple uses in the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, animal nutrition, and cosmetics industries. Read below to learn how personal care raw material supplier Bell Chem’s ammonium chloride is utilized in these industries and more.  

Pharmaceutical

While ammonium chloride is renowned for its role in fertilizers, food-grade ammonium chloride has specific applications in products used and consumed by humans. As a positively charged salt, the body recognizes its function as a catalyst for cell excitability.   

• In the respiratory system, ammonium chloride irritates the bronchial mucosa, causing an expectorant response. Therefore, it is often added to cough medicines.   

• During a metabolic crisis, ammonium chloride’s low pH makes it a perfect choice to return the body to homeostasis. Induced orally, ammonium chloride is given to diagnose renal tubular acidosis, to treat a number of urinary tract infections, and to acidify urine.   

Cosmetics

Cosmetics and personal care products often contain ammonium chloride because it absorbs moisture. This makes products more viscous and the lather the products produce is likewise thicker.   

• Labels of shampoos and conditioners, bath salts and oils, body and facial washes and cleansers, and hair dyes and bleaches often tout ammonium chloride as an ingredient.    

Food and Beverage

Foods and beverages take full advantage of ammonium chloride’s moisture absorption properties, adding it during many different steps in the processing of varied products.  

• Yeast and microorganisms need a source of nutrition, and ammonium chloride meets that need. Added to breads, ammonium chloride stabilizes the pH and strengthens the crust as breads rise to new levels of deliciousness.  

• Beer cannot be processed without yeast, and ammonium chloride functions in much the same manner as it does in baking — feeding the yeast and leading to a more robust flavor.  

• Licorice's bitter flavor is due to the addition of ammonium chloride. This important chemical also flavors chewing gums and vodka.  

• Cattle also enjoy the flavor of ammonium chloride, which acts as a feed supplement.  

Bell Chem is a personal care raw material supplier based in Longwood, FL (just north of Orlando) with hundreds of products stocked in their 50,000+ square-foot warehouse, including ammonium chloride FCC. You can expect the highest quality products, expedited shipping options for maximum efficiency, and unrivaled personalized customer service. Let our knowledgeable and friendly customer service representatives and accounting staff personalize all your needs by either calling 407-339-BELL (2355) or by sending us an online message.