| It is difficult to think of a food nowadays
where there are NO additives. Even table salt (pure sodium chloride)
has calcium silicate added to make it flow better. If we include
all the potential residues from the treatments in the field and
greenhouse, and if we take care to read the labels of all the jars
and cans we eat to see what colourings, flavourings and preservatives
are added, then we can see that the average consumer has a very
different diet to 100 years ago.
Most of these additives have been individually tested in the
laboratories that they are not toxic, but they have not been checked
as an aggregate.
There are even some foods which are composed almost entirely
of chemicals and refined food products:-
1. Many 'potato crisp' type products are not made directly from
potato slices, but from starches which have been extracted from
potatoes, then cooked with flavouring and other additives.
2. Pot-Noodles similarly use 'agri-chemicals' to make the noodles,
with many chemical additives
These seem to be the most extreme examples, however, the example
of potato starch is not abnormal. Food contains many starches,
glucose syrups, gums and extracts which are in fact 'industrial
products' derived from natural foods. Many vegetable oils are
extracted from the plants using chemical solvents.
http://www.fst.rdg.ac.uk/foodlaw/additive.htm
includes details of all additives approved in Europe
http://www.leffingwell.com/
is a site specialising in food fragrances and 'additives technology'
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