Vessa is an additives and ingredients distributor in Turkey, providing raw materials for the food, pharmaceutical, personal care and animal nutrition (feed) industries. There are many types of additives and ingredients used to make foods, medicines, feeds and cosmetics and they perform lots of useful functions that consumers often take for granted.
For centuries, additives and ingredients have served important functions in a variety of foods. Our ancestors used salt to preserve meats and fish, added herbs and spices to improve the flavor of foods, preserved fruit with sugar and pickled cucumbers in a vinegar solution. Today, consumers demand and enjoy a food supply that is flavorful, nutritious, safe, convenient, colorful and affordable. Food additives and advances in technology help make that possible.
Natural ingredients are derived from natural sources. For example, soybeans and corn provide lecithin to maintain product consistency; beets provide beet powder used as food coloring. Some ingredients are not found in nature and therefore must be synthetically produced as artificial ingredients. Also, some ingredients found in nature can be manufactured artificially and produced more economically with greater purity and more consistent quality than their natural counterparts. For example, Vitamin C or Ascorbic Acid may be derived from an orange, or produced in a laboratory. These ingredients are subject to the same strict safety standards regardless of whether they are naturally or artificially derived.
Following are some reasons why additives and ingredients are added to foods:
To improve taste, texture and appearance: Natural and artificial flavors, sweeteners and spices are added to enhance the taste of food. Food colors maintain or improve appearance. Emulsifiers, stabilizers and thickeners give foods the texture and consistency consumers expect. Leavening agents allow baked goods to rise during baking. Some additives help control the acidity and alkalinity of foods while other ingredients help maintain the taste and appeal of foods with reduced fat content.
To maintain or improve safety and freshness: Preservatives slow product spoilage caused by mold, air, bacteria, fungi or yeast. In addition to maintaining the quality of the food, they help control contamination that can cause foodborne illness. Antioxidants prevent fats and oils and the foods containing them from becoming rancid or developing an off-flavor. They also prevent cut fresh fruits such as apples from turning brown when exposed to air.
To maintain or improve nutritional value: Vitamins, minerals and fiber are added to many foods to make up for those lacking in a person's diet or lost in processing or to enhance the nutritional quality of a food. Such fortification and enrichment has helped reduce malnutrition.
Food additives are strictly studied, regulated and monitored. Regulations require evidence that each substance is safe at its intended level of use before it may be added to foods. Furthermore, all additives are subject to ongoing safety review as scientific understanding and methods of testing continue to improve. Consumers should feel safe about the foods they eat.
The following summary lists the types of common food ingredients, why they are used and some examples of the names that can be found on product labels. Some additives are used for more than one purpose.
SWEETENERS
Function: Add sweetness with or without extra calories.
Application Areas: Beverages, baked goods, confections, table-top sugar, substitutes, many processed foods.
Examples: Sucrose (sugar), Glucose, Fructose, Sorbitol, Mannitol, Corn Syrup, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Saccharin, Aspartame, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium (Acesulfame-K), Stevia, Neotame etc.
PRESERVATIVES
Function: Prevent food spoilage from bacteria, molds, fungi or yeast (antimicrobials); slow or prevent changes in color, flavor or texture and delay rancidity (antioxidants); maintain freshness.
Application Areas: Fruit sauces and jellies, beverages, baked goods, cured meats, oils and margarines, cereals, dressings, snack foods, fruits and vegetables.
Examples: Ascorbic Acid, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Calcium Propionate, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite, Calcium Sorbate, Potassium Sorbate, BHA, BHT, EDTA, Tocopherols (Vitamin E) etc.
COLOR ADDITIVES
Function: Offset color loss due to exposure to light, air, temperature extremes, moisture and storage conditions; correct natural variations in color; enhance colors that occur naturally; provide color to colorless and fun foods.
Application Areas: Many processed foods (candies, snack foods, margarine, cheese, soft drinks, jams, jellies, gelatins, pudding and pie fillings).
Examples: Beta-Carotene, Carmine, Paprika Oleoresin, Caramel Color, Saffron etc.
FLAVORS
Function: Add specific flavors (natural or synthetic).
Application Areas: Pudding and pie fillings, gelatin dessert mixes, cake mixes, salad dressings, candies, soft drinks, ice cream, BBQ sauce.
Examples: Natural flavoring, artificial flavor and spices.
FLAVOR ENHANCERS
Function: Enhance flavors already present in foods (without providing their own separate flavor).
Application Areas: Many processed foods.
Examples: Monosodium Glutamate (MSG), Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Disodium Guanylate or Inosinate etc.
EMULSIFIERS
Function: Allow smooth mixing of ingredients, prevent separation. Keep emulsified products stable, reduce stickiness, control crystallization, keep ingredients dispersed and help products dissolve more easily.
Application Areas: Salad dressings, peanut butter, chocolate, margarine, frozen desserts.
Examples: Soy Lecithin, Mono and Diglycerides, Egg Yolks, Polysorbates, Sorbitan Monostearate etc.
STABILIZERS, THICKENERS, BINDERS, TEXTURIZERS
Function: Produce uniform texture, improve mouth-feel.
Application Areas: Frozen desserts, dairy products, cakes, pudding and gelatin mixes, dressings, jams and jellies, sauces.
Examples: Gelatin, Pectin, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Xanthan Gum, Whey etc.
ACIDULANTS
Function: Control acidity and alkalinity, prevent spoilage.
Application Areas: Beverages, frozen desserts, chocolate, low acid canned foods, baking powder.
Examples: Lactic Acid, Citric Acid, Ammonium Hydroxide, Sodium Carbonate etc.
ANTI-CAKING AGENTS
Function: Keep powdered foods free-flowing, prevent moisture absorption.
Application Areas: Salt, baking powder, confectioner's sugar.
Examples: Calcium Silicate, Silicon Dioxide etc.
HUMECTANTS
Function: Retain moisture.
Application Areas: Shredded coconut, marshmallows, soft candies, confections.
Examples: Glycerin, Sorbitol etc.
FAT REPLACERS
Function: Provide expected texture and a creamy mouth-feel in reduced-fat foods.
Application Areas: Baked goods, dressings, frozen desserts, confections, cake and dessert mixes, dairy products.
Examples: Olestra, Cellulose Gel, Carrageenan, Polydextrose, Modified Food Starch, Microparticulated Egg White Protein, Guar Gum, Xanthan Gum, Whey Protein etc.
NUTRIENTS
Function: Replace vitamins and minerals lost in processing (enrichment), add nutrients that may be lacking in the diet (fortification).
Application Areas: Flour, breads, cereals, rice, macaroni, margarine, salt, milk, fruit beverages, energy bars, instant breakfast drinks.
Examples: Thiamine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Niacin, Folic Acid, Beta Carotene, Alpha Tocopherols, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin D, Amino Acids (L-Tryptophan, L-Lysine, L-Leucine, L-Methionine) etc.
LEAVENING AGENTS
Function: Promote rising of baked goods.
Application Areas: Breads and other baked goods.
Examples: Baking Soda, Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate etc.
DOUGH CONDITIONERS
Function: Produce more stable dough.
Application Areas: Breads and other baked goods.
Examples: Ammonium Sulfate, Azodicarbonamide, L-Cysteine etc.
YEAST NUTRIENTS
Function: Promote growth of yeast.
Application Areas: Breads and other baked goods.
Examples: Calcium Sulfate, Ammonium Phosphate etc.
FIRMING AGENTS
Function: Maintain crispness and firmness.
Application Areas: Processed fruits and vegetables.
Examples: Calcium Chloride, Calcium Lactate etc.
ENZYME PREPARATIONS
Function: Modify proteins, polysaccharides and fats.
Application Areas: Cheese, dairy products, meat.
Examples: Enzymes, Lactase, Papain, Rennet, Chymosin etc.
GASES
Function: Serve as propellant, aerate or create carbonation.
Application Areas: Oil cooking spray, whipped cream, carbonated beverages.
Examples: Carbon Dioxide, Nitrous Oxide etc.
