Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Food Additive

This is the last chapter from this module. What I have learned from this chapter is that role of food additive different based on the food products. Food additive is any substance that is intentionally introduced on food in a small amount so that it affect the food's quality  or may affect the characteristic of the food. There are two types of additive; natural and artificial.

E-Number is a referred number given to food additives which has passed safety tests and that has been approved to be used within the European Union and Switzerland  while the INS number is developed by international body(Codex Alimentarius). There are about 7 types of food additives; preservative, antimicrobial agent, colouring substance, flavour substance, flavour enhancer, antioxidant and food conditioner.

Food additives are usually added into food to improve nutritional value. It also to maintain freshness of food as it can prevent microbial spoilage by reading oxidation. Food additives can also improve taste, appearance and texture of food as it aids in food processing and preparation.