Distarch phosphate is made by the use of sodium trimetaphosphate which crosslinks starch chains at an approximate rate of one phosphate link per 620 glucopyranose units. The amounts of phosphate introduced are at the most 0.04% P (Graefe, 1964). Cross-linking of starch chains may be produced also by the use of phosphorus oxychloride. Although theoretically likely, there is no relevant chemical evidence to show that modification by phosphorus oxychloride in fact produces distarch phosphate