What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives WHAT ARE FOOD ADDITIVES?
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INTERNATIONAL F OOD I NFO RMATION COUNCIL FOUNDATION What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives WHAT ARE FOOD ADDITIVES? A food additive is an ingredient added to a food to perform or storage (known as indirect food additives). In the U.S., a specific function. Additives include substances that are food additives are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug added directly to foods and beverages (known as direct Administration (FDA) and are listed in the ingredient list on a food additives), as well as those that become a part of food product’s label. in trace amounts due to processing, packaging, shipping What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives 2 THE FUNCTIONS OF FOOD ADDITIVES Why are food additives used? Food additives provide a specific function in a wide variety of foods—in particular, in maintaining or improving their safety, freshness, taste, texture, appearance or nutritional value. Below are some more specific reasons for why food additives are used: • To maintain or improve safety and • To improve or maintain • To improve taste, texture and freshness Food additives known as nutritional value Vitamins, appearance Spices, natural and preservatives slow product spoilage minerals and dietary fiber are artificial flavors, low and no-calorie caused by mold, air, bacteria, fungi added to many foods to make sweeteners, salt and pepper are or yeast. In addition to maintaining up for cases in which those often added to enhance the taste the quality of the food, they help nutrients are lacking in a person’s of food. Food colors maintain or diet or in which they are lost in improve appearance. Emulsifiers, control contamination that can food processing, or to otherwise stabilizers and thickeners give cause foodborne illness, including enhance the nutritional quality foods the texture and consistency. life-threatening botulism. One group of a food. Such fortification and Leavening agents allow baked of preservatives—antioxidants— enrichment have helped prevent goods to rise during baking. Some prevents fats, oils and the foods and reduce malnutrition in the additives help control the pH containing them from becoming U.S. and many other countries balance of foods, while other added rancid or developing an off flavor. worldwide. All products containing ingredients help maintain the taste They also prevent cut fresh fruits added nutrients must be and appeal of foods while reducing such as apple slices from turning appropriately labeled. the fat content. brown when exposed to air. Food additives can be naturally or synthetically derived. Some food additives may be identical to those found in nature but are produced synthetically to maintain consistency and to reduce costs during manufacturing. This also helps promote sustainable food additive production. What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives 3 THE BENEFITS OF FOOD ADDITIVES Safety, taste and convenience Some food additives could be eliminated if we grew all our own food and cooked every meal from scratch. Modern life makes this difficult for many of us, so food additives help ensure that prepared and semi-prepared foods convenient and safe. The ingredients may help us get dinner on the table more quickly (saving time) or keep the food in our pantry or refrigerator from going bad before we can eat it (saving money). By slowing spoilage, food additives also help reduce food waste and prevent food poisoning. Sustainability Less food waste means fewer resources are expended growing and shipping food, so less stress is put on the environment. FOOD ADDITIVE REGULATIONS In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for evaluating the safety and uses of approved food additives. Before a new additive can be used or before an existing additive can be used in a new way, the manufacturer must get FDA approval, showing that the food additive is safe. During the approval process, the FDA determines its immediate and long-term health effects, other safety factors and permitted amounts in food. If the additive is approved, the FDA sets limits on where it can be used and in what amounts, as well as stipulating how it should appear on the food label. When it comes to the amount that can be used, the FDA limit is generally a tiny fraction (1/100th or 1%) of the amount of the additive that is shown to be safe. If in the future there is new evidence that an additive in use might be unsafe, the FDA can reassess its safety to determine if any action is needed to protect public health. What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives 5 There are many food ingredients World Health Organization (FAO/WHO) that are generally recognized as safe Expert Committee on Food Additives (GRAS) by experts based on scientific (JECFA) sets worldwide standards evidence. These ingredients do for the safety of food additives. U.S. not need to undergo a pre-market consumers can be confident that the evaluation by the FDA, but they are ingredients in foods legally imported reviewed by the agency and can be into the U.S. have met all FDA The JECFA functions as an independent challenged or receive a letter of “no regulations, confirming their safety no scientific committee that conducts risk objection.” Simply put, the letter is matter where they are made. assessments and dispenses guidance documentation that the FDA has Food additives are required to be regarding food additives to the member reviewed the ingredient’s safety data included in the list of ingredients on countries of both organizations. Along and that it has met the necessary a food package. Most food additives with the numerous working groups requirements for its safe use in usually appear towards the end of that make up the Codex Alimentarius food. Many food ingredients with the ingredient list because they Commission (CAC), the committee works longstanding historical use in foods are present in very small amounts to develop worldwide food standards were included as “prior sanctioned” since ingredients in ingredient and establish guidelines for the purpose when the GRAS guidelines were lists are presented in order of their of safeguarding public health and established in 1958. Examples of amount in the product. Most food promoting fair trade across the globe. prior sanctioned additives include additives are listed individually by According to its records, over the years ingredients such as spices, salt, sugar name, although some can be listed the JECFA has assessed “more than and some vitamins. collectively as “flavors,” “spices” or 2,500 food additives, approximately 40 Other countries around the world have “artificial flavoring.” Some are required contaminants and naturally occurring their own regulatory agencies that to include their functionality, such as toxicants. See the JECFA for more oversee food additives in similar ways. “to maintain freshness,” in the label’s information about its evaluation of Globally, the Joint Food and Agriculture ingredient statement. food additives. Organization of the United Nations and What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives 6 FOOD ADDITIVES AND PUBLIC HEALTH Food additives have many public including MSG symptom complex, health benefits. For example, many neurotoxic effects, asthma, cardiac provide enrichment and fortification to issues, and others. The FASEB prevent or reduce nutrient deficiency. report concluded that “MSG is Folic acid is used to prevent neural safe” and that some “transient and tube defects and spina bifida in mild reactions may occur in some infants. Likewise, food additives and sensitive individuals who consume preservatives are used to prevent 3 grams or more of MSG without foodborne illness. Commonly used food.” The report further suggested ingredients such as vinegar and lemon that “Consuming more than 3 grams juice are useful in extending shelf life. of MSG without food at one time is Low- and no-calorie sweeteners are unlikely,” and that typical servings of effective for weight management and food contain less than 0.5 grams of for individuals living with diabetes. MSG. Source: U.S. FDA Despite these public health benefits, • Likewise, food colors have been misinformation and unwarranted suggested to be linked to behavior controversy regarding the safety of and learning problems in children, food additives still abound. although no clinical evidence • In 1995, the FDA asked an supports this link. In 2011, the FDA independent group of scientists examined whether there was a from the Federation of American causal link between food colors Societies for Experimental Biology and hyperactivity. At the end of the (FASEB) to evaluate reported adverse process, experts concluded that the reactions from the consumption current data did not prove that food of monosodium glutamate (MSG) colors cause hyperactivity or other in foods, with adverse reactions adverse behavior in children. What You Should Know About Approved Food Additives 7 WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT APPROVED FOOD ADDITIVES Food and color additives are strictly studied, regulated and additives or any food ingredient you eat, you can do so by monitored. Federal regulations require evidence that each reading the ingredient lists on food labels and choosing substance is safe at its intended level of use before it may be products with fewer food additives or ingredients. added to foods. Furthermore, approved food additives are To eat a healthier diet, the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for subject to ongoing safety review as scientific understanding Americans recommend eating a variety of foods in various and methods of testing continue to improve. amounts and forms: canned, dried, fresh and frozen. Strive It’s important to make food choices that are right for you for a mix of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and and your family. If you would like to limit the amount of food lean proteins while limiting fats, added sugar and sodium.