Additives and Preservatives Used in Food Processing and Preservation,and Their Health Implication

Food additives are the materials that are added in to the food product intentionally while processing or storage or transportation of food. They are added directly or indirectly in the food product. They may be either natural, nature identical or artificial. As per their purpose of addition in to food products they can be classified in to following four categories: i. Preservatives- They are added into the food product for particularly food preservation purpose. ii. Processing agents- They are added with the intention to maintain desired product property or aid the food processing. iii. Sensory agents- They improve the sensory properties of food products like food colour, flavour sweetener etc. iv. Nutritional additives- These additives are added during fortification or enrichment of food products to correct the dietary deficiency. The use of additives and preservatives increased with the growing need of processed food. Excessive use of many of these additives have health effects. So, there was a need for the toxicological study and regulation of these additives. The safety of food additives and its usage levels both are evaluated and recommended by some international body.