Recently, nine ministries and commissions published the list of non-food substances that may be added to food. Originally, it was intended to clarify what food additives are and what non-food substances are, but the result was just the opposite, and people mistakenly called it the list of "illegal food additives". I thought in distress situation, isn't it ridiculous to make such a list of "non-food substances"? Someone may add watercolor to the cake tomorrow, lime powder to the flour the day after tomorrow, and red brick powder to the Chili powder the day after tomorrow ... The creative ideas of crime are endless, so wouldn't this list be extended to include thousands of non-food substances?

In fact, food additive is a proper term, which refers to those substances that are allowed to be used in food by the state. Many people have a bad impression of additives because they confuse what is illegally added to food with food additives. Might as well do a test:

Which of the following substances are not food additives? (You can select more than one)

A formaldehyde b sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate c Sudan red d industrial paraffin e melamine

F calcium propionate g dichlorvos h potassium sorbate I sulfite j benzoyl peroxide

Among the above options, A, B, C, D and G are all non-food substances. Using formaldehyde to foam seafood, using sodium bicarbonate to bleach vermicelli, using Sudan red to dye Chili oil, and using industrial paraffin to polish fruits are all prohibited by the state. Because they do not belong to the scope of food additives at all, they are definitely harmful to human health. It's just like people can't make drinks with paint, and they can't color cakes with wall paint. Melamine is naturally not a food additive. It should have been the material for furniture veneers and plastic bowls. Adding it to food can be said to be an incredible and amazing "creativity". There is no record of adding melamine to food at all times and in all countries, so it is impossible to have such a food additive.

Those non-edible substances, no matter how much they are added to food, are illegal. Food additives are different, as long as they are not used in excess or beyond the scope, they are legal. For example, it is not illegal to add food coloring permitted by the state to candy, as long as the content does not exceed the standard. Unless scientific research finds that it has a new toxic reaction, the government department will change its use limit or remove it from the list of food additives. Therefore, journalists have completely misunderstood the basic concept of food additives from melamine.

Myth 2: Some brands claim that they do not contain additives, so they are better than other brands.

A food expert asserted that "processed food without any food additives can't be high-quality and safe food". -in modern society, this is not too much. However, we will also see some good brands of food advertised in the mall: "This product does not contain preservatives." "This product does not contain artificial colors." "This product contains no essence." Consumers are moved and think they are healthier, so they buy them gladly.

In fact, this is just a means of commercial propaganda. It takes advantage of consumers' ignorance of food additives to make people misunderstand that only this brand does not contain certain additives, and other brands do. This is often suspected of unfair competition. For example, instant noodles contain very little water, and there is no need to add preservatives for long-term storage. Doing this kind of publicity is actually a kind of misleading "nonsense".

According to the Hygienic Standard for Food Additives, which came into effect in June 2008, food additives in China are divided into 22 categories, *** 18 12, including 290 additives, 0/528 spices, 0/49 processing AIDS and gum. The annual sales of food additives in the world reach more than16 billion dollars. It is difficult for modern food processing to completely leave preservatives. Even if a food claims to contain no preservatives, it may not contain no antioxidants; Even if it is claimed that it does not contain pigment, it does not mean that it does not contain essence, nor does it mean that it does not contain other additives such as emulsifier and thickener.

Myth 3: Food without additives must be safer.

In many cases, if there is no suitable additive, processed food will only be more unsafe. Take instant noodles as an example. When the oil is put in the air for ten days, it will smell spicy, while the shelf life of fried instant noodles is half a year, and it will not smell. Why? Because there are antioxidants in it. It is a matter of course that oil oxidizes in the air. What's the value of eating if we don't try to curb the oxidation problem and produce a lot of oxidizing substances that are harmful to health?

Except instant noodles, all foods with high oil content will inevitably turn to antioxidants. What crispy rice, potato chips, small twist, orchid beans, and even some biscuits, cookies, pies ... Those oily products in the supermarket will go bad for several months if they are not added with antioxidants.

For example, those preserved fruits and pickles that have been kept in the supermarket for a long time will be destroyed by bacteria and mold without the help of two "natural preservatives" such as sugar and salt. But now people know that eating too much salt and sugar is not good for health. So low-sugar preserved fruits and low-salt pickles can only resort to synthetic preservatives. For example, the jelly that children like to eat must also be added with preservatives. Otherwise, how can it be stored at room temperature for such a long time because of its low sugar content and so much moisture?

Therefore, food additives can't be added indiscriminately when they shouldn't be added, and they can't be added when they should be added. After all, food safety is the most important thing. Microbes are always ready to compete with us for nutrients in food, and oxygen in the air is always ready to make nutrients in food oxidized and deteriorated. As many experts have said, processed food without additives at all is very rare and not very reassuring.

Myth 4: Additives are only used by businesses to trick consumers.

Why can't modern food industry be separated from food additives? Because consumers put forward strict requirements on the appearance quality, taste quality, convenience and storage time of food. Without additives, it is hard to imagine that food can keep a pleasant state for a long time, and it is hard to imagine that consumers can eat safe food. Do supermarkets dare to sell products that will grow moldy or corrupt after a day or two? Do manufacturers dare to sell products that will change color and taste after a few days? Even if they dare to sell, are consumers willing to buy?

If consumers refuse to buy fresh raw materials and make their own food, but also require that the food be preserved for a long time, with beautiful color and excellent taste, then they can only get along with food additives. -there is no desire to meet without paying the price. If you want to save trouble, convenience and addiction, you often have to pay a certain price. It is not so much that merchants deceive consumers, but rather that consumers blindly pursue the convenience of "opening the bag and eating".

Therefore, we should accept food additives calmly and affirm their contribution to the safety, delicacy and convenience of food, but consumers should avoid the misunderstanding of excessive pursuit of taste, color and taste, accept the natural characteristics of food, and carefully read the ingredients on the packaging, so as to choose food wisely.

As for those harmful substances that are not food additives at all, as long as they are added to food, they should be severely punished by law. I hope that in the future, the definition of this kind of incident by law should reach the conviction level of "endangering the safety of the public", not just the punishment of "manufacturing fake and shoddy products".