The colour of our food is an intrinsic part of its appeal. Colours contribute to the taste sensation, whether they are the bright colours we associate with many fruit and vegetables, or the lurid reds and yellows common in Indian dishes. Grey colours give the impression that a food will be tasteless, or even spoiled.
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High levels of cholesterol are believed to be bad for the heart. Increasing numbers of people in the western world now take statin drugs to help reduce the levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol in their bloodstream, as it can lead to blocked arteries and increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. But a number of
...read more...
Foods that claim to improve digestive health are now commonplace on the supermarket shelves. These days, it’s not as simple as adding ‘fibre’ – many more exotic sounding ingredients such as resistant starch, inulin, oligosaccharides and polydextrose are used, not to mention the lactic acid bacteria that are added to yogurts and yogurt drinks. Inulin,
...read more...
Several vitamins and minerals are essential for our bones and teeth to grow and remain healthy. It’s crucial, for example, for children to consume sufficient calcium as it’s needed for the growth of strong, dense bones and teeth, and as we get older it’s needed to keep them that way. This is why children are
...read more...
We get the energy we need from the food we eat. Much of the energy comes in the form of carbohydrates, and if these are rapidly digested the energy is quickly taken up by the body. Such rapidly digested carbohydrates are termed ‘high glycaemic’, as they give a rapid, high peak of blood sugar. But there
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The importance of certain ingredients in the diet for maintaining health has been known since ancient times. But the need for what we now call vitamins was first realised in the mid-18th century, when the Scottish surgeon James Lind found that citrus fruit helped to prevent sailors on long voyages from developing the disease scurvy.
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Marine oils are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids, notably eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). They are extracted from various different oily fish, such as sardines, salmon, mackerel, tuna and herrings, but the fish do not make the oils themselves – they come from their own diet, usually microalgae, or for fish-eating fish, from other
...read more...
Many different minerals are essential for health, often in tiny amounts. Some of the most important are: Calcium has long been associated with formation of bones and teeth but has a wide role in human health, and claims have now been authorised for the maintenance of normal bones and teeth and also for the maintenance
...read more...
Consuming sufficient dietary fibre is essential to maintain a healthy digestive system. There are two main types of fibre – soluble and insoluble – and many different components of plants act as dietary fibres, including cellulose, lignin, beta-glucans and oligosaccharides. Insoluble fibre passes straight through the digestive tract unchanged. Because it absorbs water on the
...read more...
The modern desire to eat sweet foods that don’t make you fat has led to the development of a variety of low calorie intense sweeteners that are much sweeter than sucrose, and only need to be used in tiny amounts to satisfy the taste buds. They aren’t a modern invention – the first, saccharin, was
...read more...
Humans have always found ways to preserve their food to stop it spoiling before it can be eaten. Many of the bacteria and moulds that grow on food can be dangerous. Salmonella, listeria and botulism are familiar forms of food poisoning caused by bacteria, and one of the most infamous food poisoning incidents in history
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The texture of food is important for the look and feel of food, and also for digestion. Thickening and stabilising agents are gums that work with emulsifiers to maintain the texture of food, and create texture in water-based products that would otherwise be runny. Ingredients such as flour, cornflour and arrowroot have been used for
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One of the most important qualities of our food is the flavour – it has to taste good. All flavours are a subtle mix of the five basic tastes – salt, sweet, bitter, sour and savoury – combined with the aromas that the foods give off, which are a crucial part of the way foods
...read more...
Oil and water don’t mix but they do form emulsions – and these are crucial to the consistency of a number of foodstuffs. Nature is good at making emulsions, and the classic example is milk, where a complex mixture of fat droplets are suspended in an aqueous solution. Emulsifiers are the chemicals that make emulsions
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Many powdery and granular food products have a tendency to absorb water and clump together. Whether it’s table salt, icing sugar, non-dairy creamer, instant soup or even grated parmesan cheese, if the ingredients don’t flow freely then they are difficult to use. Salt cellars wouldn’t dispense salt, drink vending machines would block up, and the
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Acidulants are an essential ingredient in sharp, zesty food products. These acids are what give fruit its characteristic tang, and most of those that are added to food products are common in nature. For example, citric acid occurs naturally in citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons, malic acid is found in apples, and tartaric
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Flavour enhancers are used to bring out the flavour in a wide range of foods without adding a flavour of their own. For example, monosodium glutamate (E621), known as MSG, is added to processed foods, especially soups, sauces and sausages. Flavour enhancers are also used in a wide range of other foods including savoury snacks,
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Oxidation is a real problem for food products. Oxidation, for example, causes raw apples and potatoes go brown, but this can prevented in the kitchen by adding lemon juice. It’s very effective because lemon juice contains a very strong antioxidant – ascorbic acid or vitamin C (E300). By preventing or slowing down the oxidation process
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Supermarket bread contains 20 per cent less salt than it did a decade ago, according to new research. Bread is a major source of salt in the diet, providing almost a fifth of the total derived from processed foods. The recommended daily intake for UK adults is a maximum of 6g, compared with the current
...read more...
September 22, 2012 in Colours, Food Additives
The colour of our food is an intrinsic part of its appeal. Colours contribute to the taste sensation, whether they are the bright colours we associate with many fruit and vegetables, or the lurid reds
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Heart health
High levels of cholesterol are believed to be bad for the heart. Increasing numbers of people in the western world now take statin drugs to help reduce the levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol in their bloodstream,
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Digestive health
Foods that claim to improve digestive health are now commonplace on the supermarket shelves. These days, it’s not as simple as adding ‘fibre’ – many more exotic sounding ingredients such as resistant starch, inulin, oligosaccharides
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Bone and dental health
Several vitamins and minerals are essential for our bones and teeth to grow and remain healthy. It’s crucial, for example, for children to consume sufficient calcium as it’s needed for the growth of strong, dense
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Blood sugar control
We get the energy we need from the food we eat. Much of the energy comes in the form of carbohydrates, and if these are rapidly digested the energy is quickly taken up by the body.
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Vitamins
The importance of certain ingredients in the diet for maintaining health has been known since ancient times. But the need for what we now call vitamins was first realised in the mid-18th century, when the
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Omega-3 fish oils
Marine oils are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids, notably eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). They are extracted from various different oily fish, such as sardines, salmon, mackerel, tuna and herrings, but the fish do
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Minerals
Many different minerals are essential for health, often in tiny amounts. Some of the most important are: Calcium has long been associated with formation of bones and teeth but has a wide role in human
…read more
September 7, 2012 in Fibre sources
Consuming sufficient dietary fibre is essential to maintain a healthy digestive system. There are two main types of fibre – soluble and insoluble – and many different components of plants act as dietary fibres, including
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Food Additives, Sweeteners
The modern desire to eat sweet foods that don’t make you fat has led to the development of a variety of low calorie intense sweeteners that are much sweeter than sucrose, and only need to
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Food Additives, Preservatives
Humans have always found ways to preserve their food to stop it spoiling before it can be eaten. Many of the bacteria and moulds that grow on food can be dangerous. Salmonella, listeria and botulism
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Food Additives, Gelling agents, thickeners & stabilisers
The texture of food is important for the look and feel of food, and also for digestion. Thickening and stabilising agents are gums that work with emulsifiers to maintain the texture of food, and create
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Flavour enhancers, Flavourings, Food Additives
One of the most important qualities of our food is the flavour – it has to taste good. All flavours are a subtle mix of the five basic tastes – salt, sweet, bitter, sour and
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Emulsifiers, Food Additives
Oil and water don’t mix but they do form emulsions – and these are crucial to the consistency of a number of foodstuffs. Nature is good at making emulsions, and the classic example is milk,
…read more
September 4, 2012 in Anti-caking agents, Food Additives
Many powdery and granular food products have a tendency to absorb water and clump together. Whether it’s table salt, icing sugar, non-dairy creamer, instant soup or even grated parmesan cheese, if the ingredients don’t flow
…read more
September 3, 2012 in Acidulants, Food Additives
Acidulants are an essential ingredient in sharp, zesty food products. These acids are what give fruit its characteristic tang, and most of those that are added to food products are common in nature. For example,
…read more
September 3, 2012 in Flavour enhancers, Food Additives
Flavour enhancers are used to bring out the flavour in a wide range of foods without adding a flavour of their own. For example, monosodium glutamate (E621), known as MSG, is added to processed foods,
…read more
September 1, 2012 in Antioxidants, Food Additives, Preservatives
Oxidation is a real problem for food products. Oxidation, for example, causes raw apples and potatoes go brown, but this can prevented in the kitchen by adding lemon juice. It’s very effective because lemon juice
…read more
June 18, 2013 in - News Items -
Supermarket bread contains 20 per cent less salt than it did a decade ago, according to new research. Bread is a major source of salt in the diet, providing almost a fifth of the total
…read more
April 11, 2013 in - News Items -
BBC 1’s recent episode of Bang Goes The Theory asked how much the public really knows about what is on their dinner plate, and was produced with the advice and assistance of FAIA. Find out
…read more
January 8, 2013 in - News Items -
EFSA opinion on artificial the sweetener aspartame says ‘it poses no toxicity concern for consumers at current levels’.
December 31, 2012 in Our Members
Founded in 1935, Cornelius are a European distributor of speciality chemicals with operations in UK, Eire, France, Poland, Russia and Scandinavia and sourcing offices in China and India. Cornelius Group plc represents innovative suppliers from
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December 22, 2012 in Nutrient metabolism
Certain nutrients are essential for basic bodily functions, and a wide range of health claims have been authorised by the EU in this area. They include: *The homocysteine metabolism claims are of special interest as this
…read more
December 7, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Mental health
Numerous health claims have been authorised by the EU in this area. They fall into three major categories – psychological, cognitive and neurological claims. Many claims submitted for memory and its enhancement were rejected.
…read more
December 4, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Immune system
The immune system is a complex collection of organs, cells and tissues that work collectively to protect the body against disease caused mostly by pathogens (bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi). Parts of the immune system
…read more
December 4, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Hair, nails and skin
Several claims have been authorised by the EU for vitamins and minerals that help maintain healthy hair, nails and skin. These include: *Collagen is the elastic net that helps to give the skin suppleness The
…read more
December 4, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Energy and exercise
Sports nutrition is a huge and growing market, with an array of products and ingredients authorised to claim that they boost physical performance. Energy, which is essential for stamina, is produced by the metabolism of
…read more
December 4, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Cellular health
Our bodies are made up of cells and it is therefore essential for cells to develop normally and remain healthy to ensure overall health. Health claims are now authorised across the EU for nutrients which
…read more
November 20, 2012 in Muscle & joint health
Several claims have been authorised for muscle and joint health. These include: Health claim – ‘contributes to…’ Normal muscle function Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, vitamin D* Growth in muscle mass Protein The maintenance of muscle mass
…read more
November 10, 2012 in Beneficial Health Claims, Nutrition Claims
LOW ENERGY A claim that a food is low in energy, and any claim likely to have the same meaning for the consumer, may only be made where the product does not contain more than
…read more
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