Chemicals in Food

Chemicals are important components of building everything on earth. All living things, including humans, plants and animals, contain chemicals. All foods are made up of chemicals. Chemicals in food are usually safe and desirable – for example, nutrients such as proteins, fats, carbohydrates and fibre are made up of chemicals. Much of this happens naturally and affects both our diet and eating.

Chemicals, however, can contain a variety of toxic substances, some of which can cause effects on humans and animals. Generally, these are harmless unless we are exposed to them for a long time and are high quality. Scientists are helping to protect these harmful effects by establishing safer levels. This scientific advice informs decision makers who control the use of chemicals in food or who want to reduce their presence in the food chain.

Chemicals play a major role in food production and storage. Dietary supplements, for example, can increase the life of a meal; others, such as colours,  make food more appealing. Flavours are used to make food taste good. Ingredients are used as sources of nutrition.

Food packaging and containers such as cups, plates and bottles are used to improve food handling and transportation, and may possess chemical substances such as plastic, nutrients that can move food. Some chemicals can be used to fight diseases in pets or plants, or can sometimes be found in food due to production processes such as heating / cooking or eliminating contaminants.

Some plants and fungi naturally produce toxins that can harm plants and worry about human and animal health. Humans can also be exposed to both natural and man-made chemical compounds at various levels in the environment, e.g. on earth, in water and in space. Examples include industrial pollutants such as dioxins and PCBs. A variety of metals can occur naturally locally or as a result of human activity.

Regulated food ingredients:

1. Food additives:

Food additives are substances that are deliberately added to food to do certain technical tasks, for example, to colour, sugar or to help preserve food.

In the European Union all food additives are given E number. Foods are often included in the list of supplements. Product labels should identify both the performance of the additive to the finished food (e.g., colour, preservative) and the substance used with reference to the appropriate E number or its name (e.g., E 415 or Xanthan gum). Common supplements appear on antioxidant food labels (preventing oxidative degradation), dyes, stabilisers, gelling agents, emulsifiers, preservatives, sweeteners and thickeners.

2. Food enzymes:

Enzyme protein molecules are present in all living things. They speed up and regulate chemical reactions, in many cases increasing the reaction rate by a million times. For example, they help digest food, digest and eliminate wastes from humans and animals, and they play a vital role in muscle contraction.

Enzymes are used indiscriminately in food production, e.g., making dough, for centuries. They can be obtained by extracting from plants or animals or by breeding in small animals. They are usually cleaned but may contain different traces of other naturally occurring components of these three sources. They are often added to do technical work in the making, processing, preparation and treatment of food. Examples include enzymes used to break down fruit formation so that producers can produce extra juice, or convert starch into sugar in alcohol production.

3. Food flavourings:

Flavours are substances used to give flavour and / or aroma to food. Flavours have a long history of safe use in a wide variety of foods, from confectionery and cold drinks to cereals, cakes and yoghurt. They are used in relatively small amounts so that consumer exposure is minimal. European Union (EU) law defines different types of flavours, such as natural flavours and smoky flavours.

Food chain residues:

1. Feed additives:

Feed additives are products used in animal feed to achieve an effect on education itself, in animals, in food products derived from animals that use food supplements, or in the environment. For example, food additives are used to improve the taste of food, to meet certain nutritional needs or to increase the performance of animals in good health.

2. Food contact materials:

Food contact items are all items and documents intended for food contact, such as packaging and containers, kitchen utensils, cutting materials and utensils. These can be made of a variety of materials including plastic, rubber, paper and metal.

They include materials used in processing materials, such as coffee makers or production equipment and containers used for transportation. European food law also includes water containers intended for human consumption, e.g., bottles, but does not include fixed or private water supply equipment.

3. Pesticides:

The term “pesticide” is often used as a synonym for plant protection products. However, pesticides are a broad term that also includes products such as biocides, designed for non-plant use to control disease-carrying insects such as insects, rodents and mice and not to fall under EFSA.

Plant protection products are insecticides that are widely used to keep plants healthy and to protect them from disease and invasion. They include herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, acaricides, plant growth controllers and insect repellents.

Contaminants:

Contamination is something that is not intentionally added to food. These substances may be introduced into the server from natural sources (e.g., mycotoxins produced by mould) or during production processes. They can also be caused by pollution. The most important food impurities include:

Natural toxins. Toxins are naturally occurring substances that are produced by biodiversity. Examples include plant toxins such as alkaloids or mycotoxins.

Environmental pollution and heavy metals: Environmental pollution is man-made matter that is present in air, water or soil. Examples of environmental pollutants include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, chlorinated pesticide-resistant pesticides, and brominated flame filters. Heavy metals also enter the food system through the environment, where their presence is natural or is due to industrial emissions.

Conclusion:

The scientific risk assessments are conducted by EFSA which is the main function that provides the information about food related risks and chemical hazards in foods. Our scientists use standard recognized methods in their assessment of chemical hazards to help protect consumer and animal health and to protect the environment. Many risk assessment techniques are developed to help the experts to ensure the testing complies with the highest scientific standards.