Food Quality

Food additives are those substances that, whether or not they have nutritional value, are neither consumed alone as a food nor are normally used as a nutritional component. On another note, they are added for technological purposes either during manufacturing, preparation, packing, packaging or transport. These materials are expected to become part of food and affect its properties.

The British Institute of Food Science suggested the classification of food additives into two groups:

– The first group (additives that help in the manufacturing process) includes:

Agglomeration inhibitors, enzymes, foam inhibitors, adhesion inhibitors, encapsulation helpers, browning inhibitors, extraction solvents, moisturizing helpers, and texture improvers.

– The second group (additives that affect the properties of final product) is classified into four categories:

• The first category: additives that affect physiochemical and physical qualities of the product.
• The second category: additives that affect the organoleptic (sensual) qualities such as emulsifiers and texture thickeners.
• The third category: additives that help food storage, such as preservatives and antioxidants.
• The fourth category: additives that help improve the nutritional value for its additions of vitamins, minerals and amino acids.

Food contact:

everything that comes into contact with food such as conservation packages, transportation, kitchenware and food processing tools. These compounds are so numerous that they have reached more than 3000 compounds until now.

Analysis is made for a group of contaminants from food contact including:

• 8 phthalate compounds
• DMP, DEP, DBP, DIBP, BBP, DEHP, DOP, DIDP, in oils.

– Analysis using GC-MS was adopted in 2013.
– This method of analysis covers the European limits.
– Investigation limit reaches up to 0.125 mg/kg.
– Bisphenol A
– Bisphenol A in children packages
– Analysis using HPLC was adopted in 2011
– Investigation limit reaches up to10 micrograms/kg limit.