Food Additives

Food Additives – as the title suggests – are the substances which are added to food products. All the packaged food contains additives to improve its shelf life and other properties of food. The additives in the packed food are indicated in the ingredients section on a food packaging.  

Image Courtesy: http://healthychild.org/

A food additive is defined as a substance or a mixture of substances, other than a base foodstuff, which is present in a food as a result of any aspect of production, processing, storage or packing. According to World Health Organization food additives are the non-nutritive substances added intentionally, generally in small quantities to improve its appearance, flavours, textures or storage properties. This includes those added primarily for their nutritive value such as vitamins and minerals.

Any substance the intended use of which results, directly or indirectly, in its becoming a component of or otherwise affecting the characteristics of any food and which is safe under the condition of its use.  It can include intentional added to food in small quantities to improve its functional performance. Unintentional when not added to achieve an effect in the food but which may accidently enter into foods as a result of their use in agricultural production, raising animals, food processing or packing and may be known as contaminants.

The food additives used should be technologically effective, safe in use, in absolutely necessary quantity, never with the intention of misleading a customer about the nature or quality of a food and minimum use of non-nutrient food additives.

The various types of additives which are added to food are as follows:

Food preservatives are substances that are added to food items in order to inhibit, retard or arrest the process of fermentation, acidification, and decomposition of food items. Or, in other words, preservatives in food help keep the food safe, without spoiling, for longer.

Antioxidants are used as food additives to preserve food for a longer period of time. Antioxidants act as oxygen scavengers as the presence of oxygen in the food helps the bacteria to grow that ultimately harms the food. In the absence of antioxidant food additive, oxidation of unsaturated fats takes place rendering to foul smell and discoloration of food.  Some antioxidants combine with oxygen to prevent oxidation and other prevent the oxygen from reacting with the food leading to its spoilage.

A color additive is any dye, pigment, or other substance that can impart color to a food, drug, or cosmetic or to the human body. Color additives are important components of many products, making them attractive, appealing, appetizing, and informative. Added color serves as a kind of code that allows us to identify products on sight, like candy flavors etc.

An emulsifier is a molecule in which one end likes to be in an oily environment and the other in a water environment. To make an oil-in-water emulsion, such as mayonnaise, droplets of oil molecules are surrounded by the oil-loving end of the emulsifier molecules. This leaves the water-loving ends on the outside of the droplet, and so they sit happily in water, giving a homogeneous liquid rather than an unappealing mixture of water and oily droplets.

Thickening and stabilising agents are gums that work with emulsifiers to maintain the texture of food, and create texture in water-based products that would otherwise be runny.

Thickening agents, or thickeners, are substances which increase the viscosity of a solution or liquid/solid mixture without substantially modifying its other properties. Thickeners may also improve the suspension of other ingredients or emulsions which increases the stability of the product.

Stabilizers when added to the food items, smoothen the texture of the food & give a definite body to the food. Food stabilisers are added in relatively small amount which aggravate the effect of emulsifiers. They give a uniform nature to the product & hold the flavoring compounds in dispersion.

Bleaching agents are used for whitening flour to obtain a product of consistent quality and colour. They also improve flour's baking characteristics (maturing and conditioning).

Sequestrants improve the quality and stability of the food products. Sequestrants form chelate complexes with metal ions, especially copper, iron and nickel, which serve as catalysts in the oxidation of the fats in the food.

A leavening agent also known as a raising agent are the substances used in doughs and batters that causes a foaming action that lightens and softens. The leavening agent incorporates gas bubbles into the dough.

Acidity regulators, or pH control agents, are food additives added to change or maintain pH (acidity or basicity) of a food substance. They can be organic or mineral acids, bases, neutralizing agents, or buffering agents.

Firming agents are food additives added in order to precipitate residual pectin, thus strengthening the structure of the food and preventing its collapse during processing.

So now turn that food packet and read the ingredients to know which food additive it contains and why? Happy reading! :)

Post by Faiz Lahori