Chapter 7 - Analysis of food Additives

Abstract

Food additives refer to all kinds of trace substances used in food or food processing, the amount of which does not exceed 2% of the total weight of food. Normally, food additives behave the following functions: 1) to improve and maintain the nutritional value of food; 2) to extend the shelf life of food; 3) to make food processing more convenient; 4) to enhance the flavor of food and grace the color of food; 5) to ensure the safety of microorganisms; 6) to keep the continuity and unity of food quality. At present, artificial synthetic food additives have gradually replaced the natural food additives, and many problems related with food additives come to the fore involving the abuse of food additives, additives exceeding standard or even toxic additives. Obviously, food additives can bring people great sensory enjoyment and commercial convenience, but they may also cause potential risks to human's health. Therefore, it is of high significance to conduct quantitative analysis on the content of food additives. In this chapter, both traditional and new rapid analytical methods will be discussed for the analysis of food additives, which is expected to help facilitate the food safety and quality in compliance with legislation and consumers’ demands.