1. ADDITIVES AND HAZARDS IN FOOD

2. FOOD ADDITIVES - DEFINITION
FOOD ADDITIVES means substances that normally are not used independently as food or its ingredient and which, after being added to the food during its production, processing packaging, transportation or storage, remain included in the food, even in changed state.

3. PROPERTIES OF FOOD ADDITIVES
Preserve the natural qualities and
the nutritional value of food
Decrease the level of or substitute for some food ingredients in order to produce dieted or specialized food
Improve the food organoleptic properties without changing its nutritional value and qualities
Improve the qualities and stability of the food during its storage
Improve the production process of preparing, processing, disbanding the products

4. FOOD ADDITIVES
Only food additives approved by the European council directives are allowed for use.

5. FOOD ADDITIVES Preservatives and antibiotics Colorings Sweeteners
Antioxidants
Acids
Acidity regulators
Antifoaming agents

6. FOOD ADDITIVES Fillers Emulsifiers Hardeners Foaming agents Gelatins
Glazing agents
Moisture-retaining agents

7. FOOD ADDITIVES Modified starch Packing gases Stabilizers Thickeners
Bread stuffs agents
Enzymes, etc.

8. FOOD HAZARDS
This group of chemical substances, also known as exogenous toxicants, comprises substances which are not deliberately added to the food.

9. SANITARY EVALUATION OF FOOD HAZARDS
The sanitary evaluation of food hazards is based on:
Acceptable daily intake (ADI) – an estimate of the amount of a food additive expressed on a body weight basis, that can be ingested daily over of lifetime without appreciable health risk
maximum level (ML), presented in mg substance per kg food.

10. INORGANIC FOOD HAZARDS - GROUPS
Pesticides
Heavy metals
Plastics, contacting food
Nitrates and nitrites
Others – antibiotics, vet chemicals, radiation contamination

11. PESTICIDES
Chloroorganic pesticides – characterized with stability in nature, good cumulation, low toxic effects
Phosphororganic pesticides – high levels of acute toxicity, unstable in nature, low cumulation
Carbamates and dithyocarbamates – unstable in nature, low cumulation
Mercury-organic chemicals – very toxic, high cumulation, stable in nature

12. HEAVY METALS Lead – used for glazing pottery
Mercury – cumulates in fish and sea food; also can be found in food, fertilized with mercury-organic pesticides
Cadmium – used as a part of some fertilizers and so is found in plants; some sea creatures accumulate it in great amount
Copper and zinc – these can cause acute poisoning; they get in the organism if the food has been stored in containers, made of copper and zinc

13. PLASTICS USED TO CONTACT FOOD
Plastics used to contact food, may cause negative effects on human health due to their chemical structure. Residues of monomers or additives, used in order to improve the plastics qualities (stabilizers, plastifiers, colorings, antioxidants), are the reason for such effects.
In order to guarantee the safety of materials and goods (packages, containers, machine elements, etc), regulations for the EU have been worked out.

14. NITARTES AND NITRITES
They are present in food as a result of growing plants with nitrogen-containing fertilizers.

15. OTHER HAZARDS IN FOOD
Antibiotics – used in agriculture as medicines or growth stimulants for the animals. They can cause allergic reactions, dysbacteriosis, etc. in human organism
Vet medicines
Radiation contamination