Preservatives are additives added to food, beverages, medications, cosmetics, paints, wood products, medical samples, and other goods to prevent decomposition or unwanted chemical reactions. The food industry has long used such food ingredient to preserve the taste and texture of their products; however, the public generally does not regard such additives as healthy or safe. It can be natural, synthetic, or man-made chemicals, and may be added at any stage of processing from raw materials to finished products. The main types of preservatives are acid, alkaline, aromatic, botanical, citric, deodorant, ester, glucose, flavoring, gum resin, high amylase, isopropyl, methyl, propyl, Quaternary amine, saccharin, sterile, synthetic resins, and UV stabilizers.
They are generally categorized into three categories based on the nature of the preservatives. The most commonly used type is vegetable oil. Food additives are required to be evaluated for human intake, according to each country's regulatory body. Common food ingredient used in food processing are glycerol, amylase (except for saccharin), acid, vitamins, benzoate, bromine, calcium, copper, chloride, corn, color, flavoring, fats, epoxy, iodine, molybdenum, phenol, pyridoxine hydrochloride (phenol, anitizer), sodium benzoate, tartrazine (tartrazine HCL), thimerosal, urea, and UV stabilization. Other additive commonly used in food processing include artificial flavorings (flavored within the food), sulfates, benzoates, sulfites, nitrates, savants, non-natural flavors, and stabilizers. Artificial one that are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) are widely used in food processing.
They have a great number of benefits, particularly in preserving the freshness of foods. They can prolong the life of foods by preventing microbial growth after they are opened. Some of them also provide antimicrobial actions against some harmful microorganisms such as Salmonella and E. coli. Some foods retain their preservative activity when stored at low temperatures because they retain the essential bacterial properties necessary for their preservation (e.g., JBS, benzoic, tartrazine HCL, and others).
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