More additives in processed foods

The level of processing of food increases the content of additives

07/07/2014

So-called additives are present in most processed foods. They serve, for example, an extension of the durability, the protection against natural but undesirable color changes, the improvement of the consistency, the avoidance of added sugar or the standardization of the color of the product, reports the Federal Association of Food Chemists in the Public Service (BLC). However, consumers often associate additives with negative health effects, which is why the lowest possible level of additives is desirable for many.

Ready to eat products with many additives
According to the BLC, a simple basic rule is available for estimating the content of additives in a food: As the degree of processing of the food increases, the number of additives used increases. If, for convenience, kitchen-ready, ready-to-cook or ready-to-eat foods are used, this is often accompanied by the inclusion of a larger number of additives. Because these so-called convenience products often contain numerous additives, according to the BLC. The food industry has recognized the growing consumer demand for food with the lowest possible level of additives such as preservatives, colorants or flavor enhancers and is therefore increasingly offering correspondingly adapted products.

Trend towards dispensing with additives?
More and more frequently on the packaging and etiquette the waiver of certain additives is declared, as products with the statement „contains no artificial colors“ or „without the addition of flavor enhancers "“ rising in the favor of the consumer, reports the BLC. In fact, not all gold glitters here. Because the recipes of many products are not really „clean“, but it hides other substances with similar effects in the list of ingredients, so the message from food chemists. For example, yeast extracts would be used instead of flavor enhancers or coloring foods rather than dyes. To make matters worse, this „Clean Labeling“ is not subject to exact legal regulations. „Each manufacturer designs its labeling according to its own marketing concept“, reports the BLC.

According to the information provided by the Federal Association of Food Chemists in the Public Service, around 320 additives are currently authorized for use in foodstuffs in the member states of the EU. These are divided into 26 functional classes such as preservatives, dyes or flavor enhancers. According to the BLC, the authorized additives and their quantity in a particular food are regulated by EC Regulation No. 1333/2008. (Fp)