Fumaric acid is an acidulant that possesses a fruitlike flavor. It occurs naturally, albeit in limited amounts, in such fruits as papayas, pears, and plums. It was first isolated from the plant Fumaria officinalis, which is where it derives its name.

Also, we find it very interesting that human skin would naturally produce fumaric acid when exposed to sunlight.

As a naturally occurring dicarboxylic acid, the utilization of fumaric acids is expected to increase.

And although it is relatively cheap, it has the great disadvantage of a stronger taste than citric acid and is difficult to dissolve in water. The solubility of fumaric acid, in fact, is only 0.63 g/100 mL, which is further complicated by the extended times necessary for solubility concentrations to go into solution. For this reason, solubility often is hastened by heating the solvent, which frequently precludes its use for many food industry applications. However, as consumers demand more organic foods, the utilization of fumaric acids is expected to increase.

References

1.  J.B. Gurtler, T.L. Mai, in Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology (Second Edition), 2014

2. Fumaric Acid Foods, Retrieved 2018-04-22.