A food additive is a substance that is added to food by the food’s manufacturer for many reasons, some reasons include: To preserve it for it to last longer than it normally would, or improve the food’s color, texture, or flavor. Food additives can also be added on accident buy the packaging that the food is in if the food absorbs it. Another kind of food additive that is added by accident is many kinds of chemicals in agriculture like pesticides can be harmful to the body but some pesticides are illegal because the food can absorb them and cause harm to Humans.

There are many different kinds of food additives used for different purposes for example: The chemical microbial agents such as benzoates are used to stop foods from growing bacteria and mold on them for longer than they would without the use of the benzoates. Also manufacturers may also add antioxidants to keep fats and oils from spoiling out of the product or to keep the natural color longer in meat.

The flavor of all foods may be altered to improve the taste. The flavored may be made better or even hidden by the use of food additives like acids used in the processing stage or spices and oils added during the preparations of the food are all considered additives. Also some synthetic additives are also used in flavor alterations of foods most of which are alcohols, esters, ethers, and carbonyl compounds. Flavor changing additives are the leading category of additives mainly because there are so many needs to improve the taste for many reasons such as to adjust for the time of the year or to give flavor to something that normally would not have it like in soft drinks.

Food additives can also change the look of foods. Changing the color or making the color stronger helps with the appeal of the food and can also make it look more natural. Food coloring additives can be both organic and inorganic but because of the better quality of the inorganic food coloring additives they are more widely used over organic additives. Most coloring additives are used in food products such as butter or margarine, mustard and other condiments, candies, ice cream, and also cake toppings. Other things that use coloring in them are most white breads because of the recent preference of it, many producers use bleaching methods to turn the breads color to white.Some food additives are also used in some soft drinks to improve the cloudiness or clarity of the drink.

Food additives have another purpose in the foods they are used in, improving the texture of the food. Food additives are used in bread products to give the dough a certain feel and make it good enough to make bread out of it and also can give the after product the crumby feel. Also additives are used to maintain ice creams and other frozen desserts texture because it can change due to the ice crystals that form in it during the freezing process. Additives are used in cheese, soup, and condiments to thicken it.

In order to improve the nutritional aspect of food some manufacturers use additives like vitamins and some minerals that can help with the overall healthiness of the food. Vitamins can also be added to restore nutrients that were lost in the manufacturing process of breakfast cereals and fruit juices. The addition of some vitamins like vitamin-

D is strictly regulated by the FDA also calcium, iron, riboflavin and thiamine are under the same regulations.

Food additives are used in the processing of foods because they can cause some reactions that usually happen later in the natural process can be hurried in the factory. Additives have many purposes in this area they can initiate the ripening of foods or the curdling of dairy products, also they can neutralize acidy products faster and to take out certain flavors of the food.

During the packaging process many parts of the packaging may accidentally become additives. Not only do manufacturers need to make the packaging appealing to the buyer but also not make it hazardous to their health if by some chance it is absorbed by the food so some put different kinds of waxes on the inside to avoid the absorption of the plastic or some chemical products can also be used.

Synthetic food additives are very recent discoveries. Some synthetic additives were used before 1938 when all new food additives by law had to be tested for safety. Also some synthetic additives have been banned such as an artificial sweetener called cyclamate because when they were testing the substances safety some of the rats they were testing on had developed tumors in their bladders. In 1996 the FDA approved the use of a synthetic fat called olestra for use in snacks such as crackers. While it sounds good because it has the same taste and color of natural fat but it cannot be digested and leaves behind no calories in the digestive tract. But all foods with this additive in it have to have a warning label on it because it can cause stomach problems.

In 1938 the food, drug, and cosmetic act was passed in congress allowing the FDA to monitor the safety of food. The laws said that any food additive had to be tested for safety by the FDA before it could be added to any food. Under the laws all substances that affect the taste, color, or any other way are considered food additives which would put any kind of genetic engineering of agricultural foods into the category of a food additive.

Bibliography

Oser, Bernard L. "Food Additive." Encyclopedia Americana. 2009. Grolier Online. 5 Feb. 2009 <http://ea.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=0161340-00>.

"food additives." Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. 2009. Grolier Online. 5 Feb. 2009 <http://gme.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=0109270-0>.

Guglielmino, Maria. "Food Regulations and Laws." The New Book of Knowledge®. 2009. Grolier Online. 5 Feb. 2009 <http://nbk.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=a2010590-h>.

Peterson, Martin Severin. "food preservation." Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. 2009. Grolier Online. 5 Feb. 2009 <http://gme.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=0109340-0>.

Food Additives

By: Bobby Aultman,And Steven Riley