Food additives

We often hear that additives are chemicals that will harm us, and they should be banned. But many food additives actually come from natural sources, such as the red colouring from beetroot plants (beet red) or the purple colour from grape skins (anthocyanins). It is also possible to manufacture additives found in nature, such as ascorbic acid or vitamin C.  Other food additives are manufactured for a specific purpose, such as artificial sweeteners like aspartame.

Why do we need additives?

Additives like sugar and salt have been used for centuries to make food last longer. Explorers and pioneers carried salted meat when they set out to discover new lands, and preserving fruit in sugar syrup happened long before the advent of canning and freezing. Additives can improve the quality of our food by making it last longer in the pantry or the fridge (acting as preservatives and humectants). They can also improve the taste or appearance of food (as flavours, thickeners or colours), allowing us to choose from a wider range of foods.

Are they safe?

To ensure they are safe, all food additives must go through a rigorous safety assessment process before being approved for use in food. This is done by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), and any new additive needs to gain approval from government ministers before being used as a food ingredient.

Most food additives are assigned to a class - colours, flavours, sweeteners, etc., and allocated an international code number. Some code numbers start with an ‘E’, which means the food has been labelled for the European market. Food additives are found within the list of ingredients on a food label.  Each additive will be listed by its class name, followed by the additive’s name or code number in brackets.  For example, Thickener (pectin) or Thickener (440).

What is that additive on my food label?

If you’d like to know more about the additives listed on the food labels, go to
www.nzfsa.govt.nz for a copy of the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) brochure, ‘Identifying Food Additives’.  This lists all the food additives approved for use in New Zealand.

More information

New Zealand Food Safety Authority:  www.nzfsa.govt.nz
Food Standards Australia & New Zealand:  www.fsanz.govt.nz