DL-methionine

DL-Methionine (CAS 59-51-8), also referred to as Hmet, is the racemic synthetic form of the essential sulfur-containing amino acid methionine.

Where is DL-methionine used?

• Animal nutrition: primary feed additive for poultry, swine, and aquaculture, correcting deficiency in cereal-based diets
• Pharmaceutical manufacturing: active ingredient or excipient in tablet and infusion formulations targeting liver support and amino acid therapy
• Food fortification: incorporated into protein supplements, clinical nutrition products, and functional foods
• Personal care: antioxidant and conditioning agent in hair and skin preparations
• It functions as a nutritional supplement and precursor compound across feed, food, and pharmaceutical manufacturing.
• Used in cosmetics as an antistatic agent in skin care creams.
• Used for urine acidification to optimize the effect of antibiotics that work best in acidic urine (pH 4-6).
• Animals can metabolize D-methionine into L-methionine, but studies show this conversion results in a loss of supplementation efficiency compared to natural L-methionine.

Good to know: Granulated forms are often preferred for feed premix blending due to improved handling characteristics and reduced dust during processing.

Formulation notes

• Adding 0.1 to 0.2% methionine to broiler chicken feed significantly improves metabolism and growth, requiring half the feed to reach the same muscle weight.

Typical specification

• Assay (purity) is 99.0 – 101.0%.
• Available in white powder or flake form.
• Loss on drying is ≤ 0.5%.

Storage, packaging and handling

• Commonly supplied in 25 kg bags.
• Store at ambient temperature in a dry, dark place.

Technical content is compiled and updated by the SoleChem product team from public technical sources; the certificate of analysis (COA) governs product-specific specifications.