FST 1: Principles of Food Science - Food Additives

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the definition, regulation, classes, and direct types of food additives presented in FST 1.

Food Additive (FDA Definition)

Any substance that is reasonably expected to become a component of food and is subject to premarket approval by the FDA, unless it is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) or excluded by section 201(s) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

Prior-Sanctioned Substances

Substances determined to be safe for use in food by the FDA or USDA prior to the 1958 Food Additives Amendment (e.g., sodium nitrite and potassium nitrite used in lunch meats).

GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe)

A regulatory designation for substances recognized as safe by qualified experts based on extensive use in food before 1958 or published scientific evidence (e.g., salt, sugar, spices, vitamins, and monosodium glutamate).

Indirect Additives

Substances that become part of the food in trace amounts due to production, processing, storage, or packaging (e.g., packaging contact materials, pesticide residues, insect parts).

Direct Additives

Compounds intentionally added to foods to perform specific functional roles, such as preservatives, texturizers, colorants, flavors, or nutrients.

E Numbers

A standardized numbering system used in the European Union to designate approved food additives (e.g., E100–E199 for colors, E200–E299 for preservatives, E300–E399 for antioxidants).

Antimicrobial Agents / Preservatives

Compounds that prevent food deterioration by suppressing microbial growth and activity (e.g., benzoates, sorbates, propionates, sulfites, nitrites, and natamycin).

Benzoic Acid and Sodium Benzoate

GRAS antimicrobial additives particularly effective against yeasts and molds in acidic foods and beverages.

Sorbic Acid and Potassium Sorbate

GRAS preservatives permitted since 1940, regarded among the least harmful food preservatives, effective against bacteria, mold, and yeast.

Coloring Agents

Any dye, pigment, or substance that, when added or applied to a food, drug, cosmetic, or the human body, is capable of imparting color.

Certified Color Additives

Synthetically produced color additives that require batch certification and strict FDA safety evaluations (e.g., FD&C Blue No. 1, Yellow No. 5).

Exempt-from-Certification Color Additives

Color additives derived predominantly from plant, animal, or mineral sources (e.g., annatto, beta-carotene, caramel, beet juice) that do not require batch certification but are NOT classified as GRAS.

FD&C Red No. 3

A synthetic food dye banned by the FDA due to animal studies linking it to cancer, with mandatory elimination deadlines of January 15, 2027, for food and January 18, 2028, for ingested drugs.

Flavoring Agents

Direct additives added to impart, augment, replace, or mask flavor profiles, ranging from natural spices and herbs to synthetic compounds (e.g., vanillin).

Acidulants

Food additives that decrease pH and provide a sour or tart taste (e.g., acetic acid, citric acid, malic acid, lactic acid, tartaric acid, and phosphoric acid).

Sugar Alcohols

Naturally occurring, carbohydrate-derived sweeteners (such as sorbitol, erythritol, and xylitol) that provide fewer calories than sucrose but are not calorie-free.

Artificial Sweeteners

Intense non-nutritive sugar substitutes with significantly higher sweetness potency than sucrose (e.g., aspartame $200\times$, sucralose $600\times$, neotame $7{,}000\text{--}13{,}000\times$).

Antioxidants (Food)

Compounds added to prevent the oxidative degradation of vitamins and essential fatty acids, hindering off-flavor development (rancidity) and toxic lipid peroxide formation.

Oxidative Stress

The biochemical damage and deterioration resulting from free radical attack on normal cellular components or susceptible nutrients.

Synthetic Antioxidants

Manufactured phenolic compounds used to protect fats and oils from oxidation (specifically BHA, BHT, propyl gallate [PG], and TBHQ).

Anti-caking Agents

Substances added to powdered or granular products (such as salt, spices, and confectioners' sugar) to prevent lump formation and maintain flowability (e.g., calcium silicate, silicon dioxide).

Bulking Agents

Non-starch polysaccharides (gums) added to increase product volume, weight, and fullness (satiety) without significantly modifying flavor.

Hydrocolloids (Stabilizers & Thickeners)

Water-binding polymers (polysaccharides or proteins) typically used at levels $< 2\%$ to build viscosity, form gels, inhibit ice crystallization, and stabilize emulsions.

Emulsion

A colloidal dispersion consisting of droplets of one immiscible liquid (the discreet or discontinuous phase) dispersed throughout another liquid (the continuous phase).

Oil-in-Water (O/W) Emulsion

An emulsion system where oil droplets are dispersed throughout a continuous water phase (e.g., milk, mayonnaise, and salad vinaigrette).

Water-in-Oil (W/O) Emulsion

An emulsion system where water droplets are suspended within a continuous oil/fat phase (e.g., butter and margarine).

Creaming (Sedimentation)

A reversible physical separation in an emulsion where lower-density oil droplets float upward to create a concentrated surface layer.

Phase Inversion

The structural transition of an emulsion from oil-in-water to water-in-oil (or vice versa), such as during the churning of cream (O/W) into butter (W/O).

Emulsifier

An amphipathic compound containing both hydrophilic (polar) and hydrophobic (nonpolar) groups that reduces surface tension between oil and water phases to stabilize a mixture.

Lecithin

A naturally occurring amphipathic phospholipid (phosphatidylcholine) sourced from egg yolk or soybeans used extensively as an emulsifier.