The role of food additives in food production

October 25, 2022

People in the food industry often say that food additives are the soul of the food industry. Why do you say this way? Because the role of food additives in food processing is really important.

Someone can ask, "good food", why do you have to add something?

In fact, without food additives, many of the good things we love to eat will become completely out of the mouth! For example, if there is no emulsifier or thickener, the soft-lued ice cream is just like the hard ice cubes! Thanks to the antioxidants, the cooking oil doesn't have to worry about buying it back and going to it for a few days.

In food processing, there are four main purposes for using food additives:

1. To maintain or enhance the nutritional value of foods, such as vitamin C in concentrated juices;

2. Improve the quality of foods, such as antioxidants, with them, the cooking oil at home does not have to worry too much to change in a few days;

3. Improve the sensory properties of foods, such as emulsifiers and thickeners in ice cream. Without them, ice cream is the same as ice cubes;

4. It is convenient for the production and circulation of food. You can see that canned food can be broken around the earth without preservatives.

Now we can buy all kinds of food in the supermarket every day, never worry about nothing to eat. However, do you know? This is largely due to the food additive.

At present, there are about 2,000 kinds of food additives approved for use in China, and they are divided into more than 20 categories according to their functions. Everyone is familiar with preservatives, antioxidants, leavening agents, spices (fragrance), colorants (pigments), etc. Also familiar with processing aids, base materials in gum-based candy, and the like.

But Minjun wants to introduce one person here, that is, "nutrition fortifier."

The role of nutritional fortifiers is to increase the nutritional value of foods.

To give a simple example: the multivitamins and minerals added to infant formula are nutritional fortifiers that meet the baby's healthy growth needs.

Because nutrient enhancers are very special, they have now been separated from “food additives” and managed separately.

In addition, when it comes to food additives, many people think that they are all synthetic things.

In fact, it is not. Among the more than 2,000 kinds of food additives approved for use in China, there are also many natural substances, such as lycopene for colorants, perlite for filter aids, and lavender essential oil. How do you sound? Very tall?