Food additives are used to enhance flavour, texture, shelf-life and nutritional properties of the foods we eat. As consumer interest about this often misunderstood topic continues to thrive, the key facts about a range of food additives are outlined below.

Low-calorie sweeteners are very popular with the weight and health conscious. Providing few or no calories they are the primary source of sweetness in low-calorie and sugar-free foods and beverages. When used wisely, these products can be useful for losing and controlling weight and for general health.

Add oil to water and the two liquids will never mix. At least not until an emulsifier is added. Emulsifiers are molecules with one water-loving (hydrophilic) and one oil-loving (hydrophobic) end. They make it possible for water and oil to become finely dispersed in each other, creating a stable, homogenous, smooth emulsion.

Previous articles of this series highlighted preservatives and antioxidants, two food additives that are familiar to most informed consumers. The present issue deals with acidity regulators and acidifiers, a less well known, but not less important food additive used to give a sour taste to food and to act as a preservative. Some acidifiers also act as stabilizers, others help antioxidants or emulsifiers, or assist in colour retention. It may seem a minor parameter, but to maintain the appropriate pH is the first step to ensure food safety and a longer shelf life.

Antioxidants are present in many foodstuffs, and everyone has heard of them at some time or other or seen them listed as additives on food packaging. But what are they supposed to do in foods? And why do they play such an important role in many products?

Preservatives are a recurring topic in public discussions, and whenever it crops up, many consumers associate them with harmful, modern chemicals in foodstuffs. But, as a brief look back into the past will show, preservation of food was practised several hundred years ago when man first used salt (salting) and smoke (curing) to stop meat and fish from going bad. Despite a number of misgivings, preservatives have nowadays become an indispensable part of the food we eat. One reason for this is the increasing demand from consumers for greater choice, ease and convenience of foods, and our high standards of food safety.

Over the centuries, various foods, like honey or sugar, have been used to sweeten our food. Today, we also have a range of new sweeteners, which provide alternatives to sugar. European Union rules establish which sweeteners may be used and ensure that consumers have access to specific information on labels.

When you read a food label, you so often see the term “flavouring” listed. Why are flavours added to food? The answer is quite simple: Consumers have set expectations of how certain foods are supposed to taste. Flavours are often added to restore or ‘upgrade’ the taste lost in processing or simply to improve on nature.

One food ingredient that is commonly on the receiving end of bad press is monosodium glutamate, or MSG. However this is unfounded. Monosodium glutamate can be safely used to add flavour and appeal to foods, and even to reduce sodium levels in foods.

All food additives must have not only a demonstrated useful purpose but also a thorough and rigorous safety evaluation before they can be approved for use. In the European Union, all additives have to be evaluated by the EU Scientific Committee on Food (SCF) before they can be used in food products.

Why is it that in many people's minds all additives are harmful chemicals with nasty E-numbers? And why is it that the roles of food additives have been so badly misunderstood?

Food makes news, and the public's appetite for information is incessant. With the advent of the Internet, breaking stories or rumours are available on a world-wide scale within seconds. It's a superb source of information, but also one to be handled with care.

Consumer demand and developments in food science and technology have led to a more widespread and varied use of food additives. As a result, we enjoy an affordable, high quality, and wholesome food supply.