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Food additives are substances added to food to preserve flavour or enhance its taste, appearance, or other qualities. Some additives have been used for centuries; for example, preserving food by pickling (with vinegar), salting, as with bacon, preserving sweets or using sulfur dioxide as with wines. With the advent of processed foods in the second half of the twentieth century, many more additives have been introduced, of both natural and artificial origin.
What Is a Food Additive?
In its broadest sense, a food additive is any substance added to food. Legally, the term refers to “any substance the intended use of which results or may reasonably be expected to result — directly or indirectly — in its becoming a component or otherwise affecting the characteristics of any food.” This definition includes any substance used in the production, processing, treatment, packaging, transportation or storage of food. The purpose of the legal definition, however, is to impose a premarket approval requirement.
Direct food additives are those that are added to a food for a specific purpose in that food. For example, xanthan gum — used in salad dressings, chocolate milk, bakery fillings, puddings and other foods to add texture — is a direct additive. Most direct additives are identified on the ingredient label of foods.
Indirect food additives are those that become part of the food in trace amounts due to its packaging, storage or other handling. For instance, minute amounts of packaging substances may find their way into foods during storage.
Examples of Food Additives
There are many food additives that are used as a preservative, such as ascorbic acid, potassium sorbate, sodium nitrite, and calcium sorbate. These food additives can prevent oxidation of fats, which cause an off-flavour to develop; prevent the growth of microbes by changing the acidity, and prevent other changes in flavour. Preservative-type food additives can be found in anything from canned fruits and vegetables to bread and meats.
Nutrients are frequently added to food, such as adding iron and thiamine into flour. Sometimes these nutrients are even mandated by law to be added. Since most nutrients are removed from flour in the processing, the government requires producers to add many of the nutrients back into the flour. Other times nutrients are added simply to increase the nutritional value of the product.
Here are some different types of food additives:
- Preservatives: ascorbic acid, calcium sorbate, and sodium nitrite
- Color additives: fruit and vegetable juices, yellow 5, and beta-carotene
- Flavors and spices: ‘real’ vanilla or ‘artificial’ vanilla
- Flavor enhancers: MSG and yeast
- Emulsifiers: soy lecithin, mono and diglycerides
- Stabilizers and thickening agents: whey, guar gum, and gelatin
This is not a comprehensive list of all approved food additives, just an example of the uses of some of the food additives you may see on an ingredients list.