BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES

"THE REASON WHY YOU CANNOT FIND A "LIST OF BANNED ADDITIVES" IS THAT
MODERN FOOD LEGISLATION DOES NOT OPERATE ON NEGATIVE LISTS (I.E.
SUBSTANCES THAT ARE BANNED, BUT ANYTHING ELSE IS PERMITTED) BUT ON
POSITIVE LISTS (I.E. SUBSTANCES THAT ARE PERMITTED),"

PROF J RALPH BLANCHFIELD, MBE
FOOD SCIENCE, FOOD TECHNOLOGY AND FOOD LAW CONSULTANT
CHAIR, EXTERNAL AFFAIRS, INSTITUTE OF FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
WEBMASTER / EDITOR, INSTITUTE OF FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
VICE PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN FOOD LAW ASSOCIATION OF THE UK
ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
IFST WEB ADDRESS <WWW.IFST.ORG>
PERSONAL WEB ADDRESS <WWW.JRALPHB.CO.UK

WEBSITES:

HTTP://ACE.ORST.EDU/INFO/EXTOXNET/FAQS/ADDITIVE/FASAFETY.HTM

HTTP://WWW.CFSAN.FDA.GOV/~LRD/FOODADDI.HTML

HTTP://WWW.FDA.GOV/BBS/TOPICS/CONSUMER/CON00063.HTML

HTTP://WWW.FDA.GOV/BBS/TOPICS/NEWS/NEW00077.HTML

HTTP://VM.CFSAN.FDA.GOV/~DMS/COS-221.HTML

HTTP://WWW.FDA.GOV/FDAC/FEATURES/1999/699_SUGAR.HTML

&NBSP;

LESSON 6: BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES

FACTORS OF SCIENTIFIC LITERACY AND FOUNDATIONAL OBJECTIVES, LEARNING OBJECTIVES, SCIENCE 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY

UNIT LESSON LIST
OTHER UNITS
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WHICH FOOD ADDITIVES ARE BANNED?

BEFORE A FOOD ADDITIVE CAN BE USED, STRICT TESTING OF THAT FOOD ADDITIVE IS NECESSARY. THE BANNING OF A FOOD ADDITIVE CAN RESULT FROM A VARIETY OF REASONS AND/OR CONCERNS. MOST OF THESE REASONS HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE SAFETY OF THE FOOD ADDITIVE OR THE HAZARDS IT PRESENTS. THE SAFETY OF THE CHEMICAL ADDITIVE IS TESTED SCIENTIFICALLY. THE SAFETY OF THE CHEMICAL ADDITIVE IS ALSO BASED ON AMOUNT OR QUANTITY DEEMED LIKELY TO BE INJESTED BY THE CONSUMER. IF THE ADDITIVE IS FOUND KNOWN TO BE A HAZARD, (KEEPING QUANTITY IN MIND), THEN THE ADDITIVE WOULD BE REJECTED.

THERE ARE MANY REGULATIONS AND POLICIES TO WHICH MANUFACTURERS MUST ADHERE. AS YOU READ ABOUT THESE YOU WILL ENCOUNTER SEVERAL ANACRONYMS OR SHORT FORMS. HERE IS WHAT THEY MEAN:

CFSAN: CENTER FOR FOOD SAFETY AND APPLIED NUTRITION

FDA: FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION

GRAS SUBSTANCES: GENERALLY RECOMMENDED AS SAFE SUBSTANCES

ARMS: ADVERSE REACTION MONITORING SYSTEM

GMP: GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES

EAFUS: EVERYTHING ADDED TO FOOD IN THE UNITED STATES

BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES ARE NOT IN A PUBLISHED LIST BECAUSE SAYING THAT A FOOD ADDITIVE IS BANNED CASTS A NEGATIVE PERCEPTION OF FOOD ADDITIVES. INSTEAD, LISTS ARE KEPT OF PERMITTED FOOD ADDITIVES. THE LIST OF PERMITTED FOOD ADDITIVES CASTS A MORE POSITIVE LIGHT ON FOOD ADDITIVES.

THE ACCEPTANCE OF A SUBSTANCE AS A FOOD ADDITIVE DEPENDS ON THE SUBSTANCES ABILITY TO REDUCE FOOD SPOILAGE, ITS ABILITY TO MAINTAIN THE NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF THE FOOD, AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE APPEAL OF THE FOOD (MAINTAINS COLOR, TEXTURE, SMELL) AND/OR ITS FUNCTION IN THE PROCESSING OF THAT FOOD. IT IS UP TO THE MANUFACTURER TO ENSURE THAT ALL ADDITIVES AND INGREDIENTS IN THEIR FOOD ARE ON THE LIST OF PERMITTED SUBSTANCES FOR USE IN FOOD.

THE REJECTION OF A SUBSTANCE AS A FOOD ADDITIVE DEPENDS ON WHETHER THE SUBSTANCE IS UNNECESSARY, WHETHER IT AFFECTS THE FOOD BY DECREASING ITS NUTRITIONAL QUALITY AND/OR IF THE ADDITIVE IS DECEPTIVE OR IF THE ADDITIVE IS KNOWN TO PRESENT A HAZARD.

READ MORE ON THE SAFETY OF FOOD ADDITIVES AT THESE SITES.

SITE A: SELECT THE FOOD SAFETY ISSUES LINK ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE SCREEN. GO!
SITE B: ABOUT FOOD ADDITIVES AND HOW THEY ARE REGULATED. GO!

ACTIVITY

SEARCH THE INTERNET FOR INFORMATION ON FOOD ADDITVES THAT HAVE NOT BEEN DEEMED SAFE. RECORD THE NAME OF THE FOOD ADDITIVE, THE INTENDED USE AND THE REASON FOR NOT PERMITTING ITS USE.

AS A START TO YOUR SEARCH YOU MAY FIND THESE SITES USEFUL:

SITE A: RED DYE NO. 3
SITE B: RED DYE NEWS RELEASE
SITE C: COLOR ADDITIVES FACT SHEET
SITE D: SUGAR SUBSTITUTES

FEEL FREE TO DO YOUR OWN SEARCH ON THE INTERNET TO FIND USEFUL INFORMATION.

ORGANIZE YOUR INFORMATION IN A TABLE FORMAT SIMILAR TO THIS.

FOOD ADDITIVE	INTENDED USE	REASON FOR BANNING
&NBSP;	&NBSP;	&NBSP;
&NBSP;	&NBSP;	&NBSP;
&NBSP;	&NBSP;	&NBSP;
&NBSP;	&NBSP;	&NBSP;
SITES VISITED: &NBSP;

ASSIGNMENT

EMAIL THE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS BELOW TO YOUR TEACHER.

1.	ATTACH THE TABLE OF BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES AND THE REASONS FOR THEIR BANNING THAT YOU MADE IN THE LESSON ACTIVITY ABOVE.
2.	WHY IS INFORMATION ON BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES DIFFICULT TO FIND?
3.	SEARCH THE INTERNET TO FIND OUT ABOUT THE PROCESS THAT IS USED TO DETERMINE WHETHER A FOOD ADDITIVE IS PERMITTED. SUMMARIZE THIS PROCESS.

ASSESSMENT

DID YOU FIND ANY BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES IN YOUR ACTIVITY SEARCH? (5 MARKS)

DID YOU FIND OUT WHY INFORMATION ON BANNED FOOD ADDITIVES IS DIFFICULT TO FIND? (5 MARKS)

DID YOU SUMMARIZE THE PROCESS USED TO GET A FOOD ADDITIVE PASSED FOR USE? (10 MARKS)