Definition of terms related to food additives and processing aids
Submitted by azaquar on Wed, 04/05/2011 - 10:56
- Food additive (Codex):
- The Codex Alimentarius defines a food additive as any substance not normally consumed as food or used as an ingredient normally characteristic of a food, whether or not it has nutritive value, and which the deliberate addition to food for a technological purpose (including organoleptic) at any stage of manufacture, processing, preparation, processing, packing, packaging, transport or storage of such food results, or may, in all likelihood result (directly or indirectly) its incorporation or its derivatives in the commodity or affect in any other way the characteristics. This expression does not apply to contaminants or substances added to foods to preserve or improve the nutritional properties.
- Food additive (EEC):
- Under the European Directive 89/107/EEC, a food additive is any substance not normally consumed as food in itself and not normally used as a characteristic ingredient in food whether or not it has nutritive value, the intentional addition of which to food for a technological purpose in the manufacture, processing, preparation processing, packaging, transportation or storage, has resulted, or may reasonably be considered to have the effect, it becomes itself or its derivatives are directly or indirectly a component of such foods.
- Aids:
- The Codex Alimentarius defines aids as a substance or material, excluding any device or instrument, which is not consumed as a food ingredient by itself, which is intentionally used in the processing of raw materials, food or their ingredients, to fulfill a certain technological purpose during treatment or processing and may have resulted in the unintentional but unavoidable residue of food or in the finished product.
- The acceptable daily intake (ADI):
- The TDI is an estimate of the quantity of a food additive, expressed on the basis of body weight, which can be ingested daily over a lifetime without appreciable health risk.
- ADI "not specified" and ADI "not limited":
- The term tolerable daily intake "not specified" is used in the case of a food substance of very low toxicity when given the available data (chemical, biochemical, toxicological and other), the total intake of food-borne this substance from its use at concentrations necessary to achieve the desired effect and its natural level acceptable in the feed does not risk to health. It is, in fact, an ADI that is not expressed in digital form. This expression has the same meaning as the term "tolerable daily intake (ADI)-ended" or "quantum satis". When assigned an ADI "not specified" to a food additive, it can in principle be used in foods in general, no limitations other than those indicated by the good manufacturing practice (GMP).
- Maximum concentration of an additive:
- The maximum concentration of an additive is the highest concentration of the additive to be effectively established effective in a food or food category and accepted without risk to health. It is usually expressed as additive mg/kg food.