Food without food additives is indispensable in modern food. National Food Safety Week was held recently. The National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center hired experts to explain the knowledge of national food safety standards and food safety risk assessment to the public through exhibitions, demonstrations and popular science seminars. In response to public concerns such as "whether the use of food additives is necessary" raised by the public, Liu Zhaoping, a nutrition expert at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that food additives are not equivalent to illegal additives, and their standardized use will not harm human health.

Indispensable additives in modern food

Without food additives, there would be no modern food industry. Food additives can improve the color, aroma and taste of food. And melamine, Sudan red, plasticizer, etc. are not food additives, but illegal additives.

Food additives refer to artificial or natural substances added to food to improve the quality and color, aroma, and taste of food, as well as for the needs of anti-corrosion and processing technology. In the modern food industry, it is indispensable as a "lubricant".

Experts say that if there are no preservatives, many foods will spoil and deteriorate in a short period of time, making it impossible to achieve long-distance transportation, and people will not have a rich variety of food options. At present, many foods on the market claim that they are "preservative-free" and "additive-free", which are favored by consumers. Many consumers stay away from food additives and believe that foods containing preservatives and other additives are harmful to health. Therefore, consumers I would rather spend a high price on those so-called "additive-free foods."

Experts from the National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment explained that products that claim to be "preservative-free" and "additive-free" are in fact misleading consumers and give consumers a false impression. In fact, preservatives are mainly used to control microbial infections. If there are no preservatives in some foods, the shelf life of the food will be very short, and it is more likely to be contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms. The metabolism of pathogenic microorganisms will produce toxic substances, which is safe for humans. create a threat. Preservatives that have passed safety evaluation can avoid this situation, and at the same time, these preservatives themselves will not cause health hazards to consumers. It can be said that food preservatives not only will not make our food "unsafe", to a certain extent, it is the defender of food quality and safety.

Experts emphasized that food additives must be used in accordance with the specified variety, scope and amount. The rational use of food additives can improve the safety of food. For example, soy sauce without preservatives will be moldy, edible oil without antioxidants will produce a smell, and the health risks caused by mycotoxins and oil rancidity are far greater than the preservatives themselves.

Integrate mandatory standards

According to statistics, there are currently more than 5,000 food safety standards in my country. Researcher Wang Zhutian, assistant director of the Food Risk Assessment Center, said that a large number of standards is not necessarily a good thing.

Wang Zhutian explained that too many food standards may bring about two problems, one is repetition and contradiction, and the other is over-management. The overlapping and contradictions of standards will bring great inconvenience to the use of standards. Not only do producers fail to find the standards that should be followed, but also the phenomenon of "there are a lot of standards and I don't know which one to use" in the supervision. Sometimes it even allows criminals to take advantage of the loopholes, leading to a mixed situation of products on the market. Wang Zhutian said that strict food standards are not necessarily scientific food standards. The current food standard clean-up work is to integrate the mandatory standards in the current edible agricultural product quality and safety standards, food hygiene standards, food quality standards and related food industry standards in accordance with the requirements of the Food Safety Law, and establish compulsory food The safety national standard system strives to resolve this chaotic situation.

Wang Zhutian emphasized: "The establishment of a scientific, unified and authoritative food safety standard system can not only lay a solid foundation for ensuring food safety, but also promote the development of the food industry."

Food safety standards must comply with national conditions

At present, after years of development, my country's food safety standard system has formed a relatively complete system. The procedures, principles, and framework of standard setting have gradually been in line with international standards. However, the integration of standards with international standards does not mean copying international standards.

According to Fan Yongxiang, Director of Standards I of the Food Risk Assessment Center, international standards do not have compulsory legal effect on countries and are generally for reference only. They only play a role when it is necessary to coordinate trade disputes or disputes between countries on specific occasions. Countries should use the results of risk assessment as the main basis, use relevant international standards and risk assessment results as references, and fully consider the level of social and economic development and objective and practical needs, and formulate national standards that adapt to their own national conditions.

In response to questions from all walks of life about the lack and backwardness of food safety standards, Fan Yongxiang said that meeting the requirements of laws and regulations is a major prerequisite for food safety production and operation and the first threshold to ensure food safety. Food safety standards are the second threshold to ensure food safety under this premise. Therefore, any food production and operation behavior that violates laws and regulations, such as illegal addition of non-edible substances, adulteration, and fraud in food, is itself a violation of the law, and there is no need to use food safety standards as the basis for supervision, let alone the absence of standards. Reasons to evade the responsibilities and supervisory responsibilities of producers and operators. For example, he said: "The mixed meat that appears now is itself illegal. If food safety standards are formulated for mixed meat, it would be very absurd."

Link Promoting "no pollution" is not scientific

According to food experts, it is unscientific to claim "no pollution" and its authenticity is questionable. As we all know, microorganisms and some chemical pollutants are ubiquitous in the environment. Therefore, it is difficult to "zero pollution" for the grains and meats we use as food raw materials from the beginning, and the food production and processing process cannot be completely in a vacuum. The process is completed. Therefore, the food we eat may have these pollutions. "No pollution" is difficult to achieve. What we can do is to control these pollutions without harming the health of consumers. Experts remind consumers that these claims must be correctly understood. They are probably just a way for businesses to use consumers' misunderstandings about food additives to promote their products.

Illegal addition of food additives includes over-range use, illegal addition, etc.

For example, melamine, clenbuterol, and Sudan red are not food raw materials or food, nor food additives, but non-edible substances added illegally. Therefore, no matter how much they are added, it is illegal. The additive "lemon yellow" used in dyeing steamed buns that appeared some time ago is a food additive and is allowed to be used, but not in excess. Some companies add excessive amounts in the production process for the sake of the appearance of the food, which is an over-range use.