A study of the effects of sucrose acetate isobutyrate (SAIB) ingestion was conducted in 13 male and 14 female healthy human volunteers. SAIB, in a gum arabic/water emulsion diluted with orange juice, was ingested once daily, at a dose of 20 mg SAIB/kg body weight in a total volume of 1.16 ml/kg body weight, for a period of 2 wk following a 1-week control period. During the control period, the subjects consumed the same preparation without SAIB. The study was performed in a single-blind manner, each subject serving as his or her own control. Haematology and clinical chemistry tests were conducted on blood samples taken on day -6 and day 0 of the control period and at 7 and 15 days during the SAIB dosing period. In addition to routine haematology and clinical chemistry, specific tests of hepatobiliary function included serum alkaline phosphatase, aspartate and alanine aminotransferases, lactic dehydrogenase, gamma-glutamyltransferase, total and direct bilirubin, bile acids and proteins. None of these parameters were affected by ingestion of SAIB. It was concluded that ingestion of 20 mg SAIB/kg body weight daily for 14 days does not affect the hepatobiliary function of human volunteers.