Sodium Hexametaphosphate (SHMP)

A glassy sodium polyphosphate with the approximate composition (NaPO3)n, where n is typically 10 to 20. Commonly written as (NaPO3)6 by convention. One of the most powerful sequestrants in food and industrial chemistry.

Clear to white glassy granules, plates, or powder. Soluble in water, where it slowly hydrolyzes to shorter-chain phosphates. Strong calcium and magnesium binding capacity at low inclusion levels.

We supply food-grade Sodium Hexametaphosphate from manufacturers in China holding ISO, Halal, Kosher and other certifications relevant to the product and production.

Common market grades include food-grade glassy granules (SHMP 68 percent P2O5), food-grade powder, and technical grade for industrial water treatment. Phosphorus pentoxide (P2O5) content of 68 percent is the food-grade standard; lower P2O5 grades indicate hydration or higher-orthophosphate content.

Bulk and reduced-MOQ shipments. Batch-level COA covering P2O5, water-insoluble matter, fluoride, heavy metals, and microbiology.

Sodium Hexametaphosphate was first described by Thomas Graham in 1833 as Graham's salt and entered commercial production in the early twentieth century as a water-softening agent. Its food applications expanded rapidly from the 1930s onward with the rise of processed cheese, beginning with the patented Kraft processed cheese formulations.

Production is by controlled thermal dehydration of monosodium orthophosphate at approximately 600 to 700 °C, followed by rapid cooling to lock the polymer in its glassy form. The amorphous structure is responsible for the product's distinctive solubility and slow hydrolysis behavior in solution.

Regulated in the EU as E452(i) within the polyphosphate group, classified as Generally Recognized as Safe by the U.S. FDA under 21 CFR 182.1810, and covered by the JECFA group ADI for phosphates of 70 mg/kg body weight as phosphorus.

Mechanism in finished products centers on metal-ion sequestration: SHMP forms soluble complexes with calcium, magnesium, iron, and other divalent and trivalent cations. In processed cheese, this disrupts the casein-calcium network and enables uniform melt. In meat brines, it binds calcium and magnesium in water and meat, freeing protein sites to bind additional water. In beverages, it scavenges trace metals that catalyze oxidation.

Strategic positioning: SHMP is the broadest-spectrum sequestrant in commercial food chemistry, working across cheese, meat, seafood, dairy, and beverage applications at low inclusion levels. Its dominance in processed cheese alone makes it one of the most important specialty phosphates by global volume.

• Processed cheese emulsification in spread, sliced, and shredded cheese formats; one of the foundational ingredients of modern processed cheese
• Meat and poultry water-binding and moisture retention; reduces cook loss in injected ham, bacon, and processed poultry
• Seafood water-binding and color retention in scallops, shrimp, and white fish
• Dairy beverage stabilization; prevents calcium phosphate destabilization in flavored milks and protein drinks
• Carbonated and still beverage clarity; sequesters trace metals that catalyze color and flavor degradation
• Frozen dessert and ice cream stabilization in combination with hydrocolloid systems
• Cereal coating ingredient and processing aid in extruded breakfast cereals
• Beer and wine production; clarifying and metal-control aid
• Industrial water treatment and detergent applications; threshold inhibitor against scale formation