Student Name: Tai Zi Jun Student Number: 18078 Class: S2HE

Topic: SPM Chemistry (Form 5) - Chapter 5: Chemicals for Consumers (Worksheet 04)
Date: 24-9-2022

SPM Chemistry (Form 5) - Chapter 5: Chemicals for Consumers (Worksheet 04)

Uses of Food Additives

1. Food preservatives have been used since ancient times. Ancient civilisation used salt to
preserve meat and fish, herbs and spices to improve the flavour of food.
2. Food additives are chemicals that are added to food in small quantities for specific purposes
such as:
a. Making food last longer by preventing the growth of microorganisms;
b. Making food last longer by preventing the oxidation of fats and oils by oxygen in air
(rancidity);
c. Making food taste or smell better;
d. Improving the texture of food and to prevent food from becoming liquid;
e. Restoring the colour of food destroyed during food processing, and
f. Adding colouring to food so as to make the food look fresher, more interesting or
more appetising.
3. Drying fruits and meat is one of the oldest methods of food preservation. It is effective
because water is necessary for the growth of microorganisms.
4. Salt and sugar can also be used for food preservation because the dissolved salt and sugar
will cause water to flow by osmosis from the microorganisms to its surroundings.
The dehydration process stops the growth of microorganisms.
5. There are six types of food additives:
a. Preservatives
b. Antioxidants
c. Flavourings
d. Stabilisers
e. Thickeners
f. Dyes
6. Preservatives are chemicals that are added to food to retard or to prevent the growth of
microorganisms such as bacteria, mould or fungus so that the food can be stored for a
longer period.
7. In ancient times, food additives from natural sources such as salt, sugar and vinegar were
used to preserve food and to make the food taste better.
8. Types of preservatives and their uses:
Preservatives Molecular Formula Uses and Functions
 To preserve meat, sausage, cheese and dried fish.
Sodium Nitrite NaNO2  To prevent food poisoning in canned foods.
Sodium Nitrate NaNO3  To maintain the natural colour of meat and to
make them look fresh.
Benzoic Acid C6H5COOH  To preserve sauces (oyster, tomato or chilli),
Sodium Benzoate C6H5COONa fruit juice, jam and margarine.
 Used as bleaches and antioxidants to prevent
Sulphur Dioxide SO2 browning in fruit juices.
Sodium Sulfite Na2SO3  Maintain the colour and freshness of vegetables.
 To prevent the growth of microorganisms.
9. Antioxidants are chemicals that are added to food to prevent the oxidation of fats and oils
by oxygen in the air.
a. Food containing fats or oils are oxidised and become rancid when exposed to air.
This makes the food unfit for consumption. The rancid products are volatile organic
compounds with foul odours (for example, butanoic acid, C3H7COOH).
10. Ascorbic acid, citric acid and sodium citrate are examples of antioxidants.
 Student Name: Tai Zi Jun Student Number: 18078 Class: S2HE
Topic: SPM Chemistry (Form 5) - Chapter 5: Chemicals for Consumers (Worksheet 04)
Date: 24-9-2022

11. There are two types of flavouring agents: artificial flavours and flavour enhancers. They
are added to food to make them taste better.
a. Flavour enhancers have little or no taste of their own.
i. They are chemicals that are added to food to bring out the flavours or to
enhance the tastes of food. An example of a flavour enhancer is monosodium
glutamate (MSG).
b. Artificial flavours include sweeteners and other flavours such as peppermint or
vanilla.
i. Aspartame and saccharin are examples of artificial sweeteners.
ii. However, the use of saccharin is banned in many countries because it is a
suspected carcinogen.
iii. Many esters have fruity odours and tastes and are used as artificial flavours.
Ester Benzyl Ethanoate Octyl Ethanoate Ethyl Butanoate
Flavour Strawberry Orange Pineapple
12. Stabilisers and thickening agents improve the texture and the blending of food.
a. Stabilisers are chemicals that are used to enable oil and water in the food to mix
together properly in order to form an emulsion.
i. Examples of stabilisers are gelatin, acacia gum, lecithin and pectin.
b. Stabilisers are added to improve the texture of food.
i. For example, stabilisers are added to ice cream and peanut butter to keep
them smooth and creamy.
c. Thickening agents are chemicals that are added to food to thicken the liquid and to
prevent the food from liquefying.
i. Thickening agents (also called thickeners) absorb water and thicken the
liquid in food to produce a jelly-like structure.
ii. Most thickening agents are natural carbohydrates.
 Gelatin and pectin are added to help jams and jellies set.
13. Dyes (colouring agents) are chemicals that are added to food to give them colour so as to
improve their appearance.
14. The food industry uses synthetic food colours to:
a. Restore the colour of food lost during food processing;
b. Enhance natural colours, so as to increase the attractiveness of food;
c. Give colour to food that do not have colour.
15. Some dyes are natural plant pigments while others are synthetically prepared.
16. The synthetic colours used in food are azo and triphenyl compounds.
a. Both these compounds are organic compounds.
17. Azo compounds are organic compounds containing the diazo group, –N=N–, and are
usually yellow, red, brown or black in colour. Triphenyl compounds are organic compounds
containing three phenyl groups, –C6H5, and are usually green, blue or purple in colour.