Food Additives
Learning Objectives:
• To understand what are food additives
• To identify the reason(s) why food additives are used
• To understand the chemical compounds present in food additives
• To understand the different roles and functions of food additives in food.
Food Additives
• Food additives may be defined as chemical substances
which are deliberately added to foods, in known and
regulated quantities, for the purpose of assisting in the
processing of foods, preservation of foods or in improving
the flavor and texture or appearance of foods.
•They, in general, are not a primary (major) constituent of food
and are usually used at a very small quantity.
• They need government approval before they can be added
to food. It needs to be proven that the additive is safe and
also doesn’t cause any adverse effects.
• If future studies show that the food additive has an adverse
effect, the government has the right to remove it from the
approved list.
Examples
1. Pickled green chilies
• Green Chillies
• Water
• Vinegar (to prevent chillies from going bad)
• Sugar (to make chillies sweet)
2. Egg dish
• Egg
• Soya sauce
(to enhance flavor)
• Pepper
3. Strawberry Jam
• Strawberry
• Sugar (to sweeten strawberry & to prevent jam from spoilage)
• Gelatin (to thicken the jam)
4. Icing Cake
• Icing sugar
• Butter
• Orange coloring (to make icing orange in color)
Types of food additives
Examples: Preservatives & Antioxidants
Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) & Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) & citric acid
Sodium Nitrate Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) Antioxidant in fruit jams and juices
preserves meats and sausages Antioxidant in margarine
Sulphur dioxide Sodium Benzoate/Benzoic acid
Alpha tocopherol (Vitamin E)
prevents browning of fruit juices preserves sauces
Antioxidant in cooking oil
Examples: Flavoring agents
Esters
Monosodium Glutamate
• Ethyl Butanoate (Banana)
• Octyl Acetate (Orange)
• Ethyl Heptanoate (Grape)
Natural & synthetic flavors
Flavourings: sweet smell in foods & perfumes
simple heterocycles
Organic Chemistry, Clayden Greeves Warren and Wothers, Oxford Univ. Press
Butter flavour
and popcorn lung disease
• The butter flavour diacetyl – used in products such as microwave
popcorn - has been linked to a rare and deadly respiratory disease
known as Popcorn Workers Lung.
• victims - flavouring industry workers who have been exposed to
vapours when diacetyl is heated.
• diacetyl vapour is irritating to throat and lungs
• diacetyl was approved for food use based on studies that examined
consumption, not inhalation.
http://fedup.com.au/factsheets/additive-and-natural-chemical-factsheets/flavours-natural-or-artificial
Examples: Stabilizers & thickners
Lecithin (egg yolk) Xantham Gum Xantham Gum, Acacia Gum, Guar Gum
in mayonanaise in salad dressings & sauces in ice creams
Agar Pectin Starch Gelatine
in jellies in jams in soups in gummies
Examples: Dyes/coloring agents
Reading Ingredients
Preservatives and antioxidants: Phosphates, Nitrite salt
Flavorings: Spices
Stabilizers and thickners: Starch
Dyes: None
Preservatives and antioxidants: salt, sodium benzoate
Flavorings: Salt, sugar, caramel, monosodium glutamate
Stabilizers and thickners: Corn starch
Dyes: Caramel
Soy Sauce
Coding Systems
Food Additives & their E-Code Number
Beneficial functions of Food Additives
• To enhance the shelf life of food
• To enhance the consumers acceptability of the food
• To improve color & appearance of food
• To improve body & texture of food
• To improve flavor (aroma and taste) of food
• To improve & maintain the nutritive value of food
General Principles for the use of additives
• It must be ascertained that the real need exists for the use.
• It does not cause any adverse physiological and harmful effects even upon regular
consumption for a long period.
• It should not reduce the nutritive value of food.
• It should confirm the agreed specifications.
• Maximum permissible quantities of a given additive should be defined.
• It is advisable to use as little as possible necessary to accomplish its desired effect.
• It must be under continuous evaluation
