Food additives

Common food additives

Food additives are natural and synthetic chemicals that help preserve, colour, and flavour food. Some additives prevent spoilage and disease, while other additives are actually enrichments that increase the nutrient value of a food. Food additives help to make it possible for food grown in one part of the world to be shipped to consumers thousands of kilometres away and eaten weeks or months after being packaged.

Many substances are added to the foods we eat during their growth, processing, and packaging. These additives are subjected to careful laboratory screening by Health Canada before they are used. A few are listed in the table below:

Additive	Description	Used in	Purpose
Algin	A compound extracted from algae	Puddings, milkshakes, ice-cream	Makes foods creamier and thicker, extends shelf life
Aspartame	Chemical compound made of aspartic acid, methanol, and phenylalanine	Beverages, puddings, yogurt, chewing gum, also sold as Nutrasweet and Equal	Low-calorie sweetener
Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA)	A phenolic chemical compound	Foods high in fats and oils such as butter; also meats, cereals, baked goods, beer, snack foods, dehydrated potatoes, chewing gum	Preservative, keeps food from going rancid; also acts as a defoaming agent for yeast
Butylated Hydroxytoluene (BHT)	A phenolic chemical compound	Cereals, shortening, foods high in fats and oils	Preservative, keeps food from changing flavour, odour, and colour
Calcium Carbonate	Compound extracted from Irish Moss, a type of seaweed	Puddings, milkshakes, ice cream, cereal	Make foods jell, stabilize foods to keep colour and flavour even
Citric Acid	An acid which occurs naturally in fruits such as lemons and limes	Canned fruit juices, cheese, margarine, salad dressings	Flavouring and neutralizing agent (keeps food at proper acidity)
Guar Gum	Substance made from seeds of the guar plant, a legume grown in India	Cheese, ice cream, jelly and preserves, and dressings	Stabilizer
Lecithin	An emulsifying agent found naturally in milk and some vegetables	Cacao bean products such as cocoa butter and chocolate, bakery products, margarine and cheese products	Keeps food products from separating
Mono- and Diglycerides	Emulsifying agents, may be derived from soybean fat	Shortening, margarine, cacao products, bakery products	Keeps food products from separating
Phosphoric Acid	A substance created by exposing phosphorous to oxygen	Acidified skim milk, cheese	Acidifying agent, emulsifier
Sodium Benzoate	A granular salt	Soft drinks, packaged beverages, fruit preserves and jellies, concentrated orange juice, margarine, fast-food burgers	Preservative