IES Simancas presentation for

the Comenius project: “Colours,

sweeteners and additives in food
products”
Our students went to local shops
to select sweets.
Selecting food products
They studied their composition.
Main sorts of food aditives we
have found
•Food colourings
•Flavour enhancers
•Preservatives
•Antioxidants
•Emulsifiers
•Gellings
•Acidulants
•Stabilizers
 Definitions
Food colouring is any substance, liquid or powder,
that is added to food or drink to change its colour.
Flavour enhancers are used to bring out the flavour in
a wide range of foods without adding a flavour of their
own.
Preservative food additives can be used alone or in
conjunction with other methods of food preservation.
Preservatives may be antimicrobial preservatives,
which inhibit the growth of bacteria or fungi, including
mold, or antioxidants such as oxygen absorbers, which
inhibit the oxidation of food constituents
An antioxidant is a molecule capable of inhibiting the
oxidation of other molecules.
An emulsifier (also known as an emulgent) is a substance
which stabilizes an emulsion by increasing its kinetic
stability.
Gellings or Thickening agents are substances which, when
added to an aqueous mixture, increase its viscosity without
substantially modifying its other properties, such as taste.
They provide body, increase stabilility, and improve
suspension of added ingredients.
Acidulants are additives that give a sharp taste to foods.
They also assist in the setting of gels and to act as
preservatives.
Stabilizers are an indispensable substance in
food items that categorised as food additives.
When added to the food items, they
smoothen the texture of the food and give a
definite body to the food. Food stabilisers are
added in relatively small amount which
aggravate the effect of emulsifiers.
Sweeteners: This category of nonnutritive,
high-intensity sugar substitutes includes
aspartame, acesulfane-k and saccharin .
Leavenigs: A leavening agent is any one of a
number of substances used in doughs and
batters that cause a foaming action which
lightens and softens the finished product
Products and their main additives
 Potato crisps
Flavour enhancers:
Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
Ionisator
Disodium guanylate

It contains (per 100 gr)

•532 kcal •Sugar 3,1 g

•Satured fat 15,0 g

Industrial desserts
Emulsifiers:
•Soy Lecithin
•E 472b
Gellings:
•E 407
•E 401
178 kcal (per 100g)
Chocolates
Emulsifier:
Soy lecithin
Leavings:
E 500

A piece (29 g) contains:

•143 kcal
•Sugars 3,1 g
 Chocolate pills

Emulsufier: Soy lecithin

Glazing Agents: E 414 E
903 E 901

It contains (per 100 g): 481kcal

“Mantecados”:Spanish Christmas
cakes
Antioxidant: E 320

Caloric information
is not available.
 Coke
Food colour: E 150d
Acidulant: E 338

Per 100 ml it contains:

•42 kcal
•Sugar 10,6 g
 Fanta
Acidulant: E 330
Perservatives: E 202
Stabilizers: E 414, E 412, E 445.
Antioxidant: E 300 (Ascorbic acid)
Food couloring: E 160a (Carotens)

Per 100 ml it contains:

•52 kcal
•12,9 g sugar
Zero Coke
Sweeteners:
E 952, E 950, E 951
Acidulant:
E 338
Acid corrector:
E 331
Per 100 ml it contains 0,2 kcal
 Chewing gums
Antioxidant: E 320
Food Colours: E 171, E 141
Emulsifier: E 442
Sweeteners: Aspartame, acelsufano
Coating agents: E 903 (carnauba wax)
E 553b (Magnesium silicate without
asbestos)

It contains (per 100 g): 178 kcal

Jellies
Study of the composition
 Emulsufiers
Soy lecithin:Soy lecithin has been found to be
effective in various food and industrial applications
due to its emulsifying properties. high doses have
been seen to cause various problems and side effects
which include gastrointestinal problems, diarrohea,
either weight gain or loss of appetite, rashes,
headache, nausea, dizziness, vomiting and unpleasant
body odour and bad breath.
E 472b: Esters of mono and diglycerides
Used to give emulsions their stability and the required
viscosity. They are now currently included in low calorie
spreads, peanut butter and ice cream to control their
texture, starch based foods such as macaroni, noodles,
potato products and in the bakery industry.There is
concern in some quarters that may be carcinogenic.
 
 Flavour enhancers
Monosodium glutamate (MSG E 621): It is often used in
fast food, snack foods, tinned and frozen food.
MSG is safe for most people when “eaten at customary
levels”. However, it also said that, some people may have an
MSG intolerance that causes “MSG symptom complex”
and/or a worsening of asthmatic symptoms.
Didodium Guanylate: Disodium guanylate is produced
from dried fish or dried seaweed and is often added to instant
noodles, potato chips and other snacks.Disodium guanylate
is not safe for babies under twelve weeks, and should
generally be avoided by asthmatics and people with gout,
 Jellings
E 407: Carrageenans or carrageenins are a family of linear
sulfated polysaccharides which are extracted from red
seaweeds. The Joint FAO expert committee on food additives
states "that based on the information available, it is inadvisable
to use carrageenan in infant formulas“.There is evidence that
degraded carrageenan (poligeenan) may cause ulcerations in the
gastro-intestinal tract and gastro-intestinal cancer.
E 401:Alginic acid, also called algin or alginate, is an anionic
polysaccharide distributed widely in the cell walls of brown
algae, where it, through binding water, forms a viscous gum. In
extracted form it absorbs water quickly. In March, 2010
researchers at Newcastle University announced that dietary
alginates can reduce human fat uptake by more than 75%.
Sodium alginate
 Food colours
E 150d:Caramel color or caramel colouring is a soluble food
colouring. It is made by a carefully controlled heat treatment of
carbohydrates in a process called caramelization. Caramel
colouring may be derived from a variety of source products that
are themselves common allergens.So, people with known
sensitivities or allergies to food products are advised to avoid
foods including generic caramel colouring.

E 160 a: Carotene, alpha-, beta-, gamma-Carotene colouring

fades on exposure to light.
Typical products include fruit juices and squashes, cakes,
desserts, butter and margarine.
E 171: Titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide may be
used in food to give opacity. No adverse effects are
known, and the compound is chemically inert.
E 141: Copper complexes of chlorophyll. Olive colour,
extracted from plants, no adverse effects are known
when used in foods. 
 Acidulants
E 338: Phosphoric acid, used in many soft drinks
(primarily cola), has been linked to lower bone density
in epidemiological studies.
E 330: citric acid is a colourless, crystalline organic
compound, belonging to the family of carboxylic
acids. Its use as a food additive is wide and varied.
Recorded problems are that it can be a local irritant
and in large amounts can cause teeth erosion.
E 331: Ascorbic Acid. Ascorbic acid and its sodium,
potassium, and calcium salts are commonly used as
antioxidant food additives.
 Sweeteners
E 952:Sodium cyclamate is an artificial sweetener. It is
30–50 times sweeter than sugar, making it the least potent
of the commercially used artificial sweeteners
E 950:Acesulfame K is 180-200 times sweeter than
sugar.Critics say acesulfame potassium has not been
studied adequately and may be carcinogenic.
E 951:Aspartame (or APM) is an artificial, non-
saccharide sweetener used as a sugar substitute in some
foods and beverages. A 2007 medical review on the
subject concluded that "the weight of existing scientific
evidence indicates that aspartame is safe at current levels
of consumption as a non-nutritive sweetener
 Our students carried out a
survey
They studied sweets consumption among students
from 14 to 17 years old
The results were the following ones:
 How often do you eat sweets?

Girls Boys

25 20
18
20 16

Number of students
Number of students

14

15 12

Serie1 10 Serie1
10 8
6

5 4
2

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare
day two days week week day two days week week
 What do you prefer?

GIRLS
BOYS

20
14
18
16 12
Number of students

14

Number of students
10
12 Serie1 Serie1
8
10
8 6

6 4
4
2
2
0 0
Chocolats Caramels Toffies Mermelade Gellies Industrial Chewing Chocolats Caramels Toffies Mermelade Gellies Industrial Chewing
desserts gum desserts gum
 How often do you eat chocolates?

GIRLS BOYS

20
18 16

16 14
14 12
Number of students

12 10
Number of students

10 Serie1
8 Serie1
8
6
6
4
4
2 2

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once day Once per tw o Once a w eek More once a More rare
day two days week week days w eek
 How often do you eat caramels?

GIRLS BOYS

35 30

30 25

25
20
Number of students

Number of students

20
Serie1 15 Serie1
15
10
10

5 5

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare
day two days week week day two days week week
 How often do you eat toffies?

GIRLS BOYS

45 30

40
25
35

30 Number of students
20
Number of students

25 Serie1
Serie1 15
20

15 10

10
5
5

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once More rare
day two days week week day tw o days w eek a w eek
 How often do you have marmalade?

GIRLS BOYS

35 25

30
20
25
Number of students

Number of students
15
20
Serie1 Serie1
15
10

10
5
5

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare
day two days week week day two days week week
 How often do you eat jellies?

BOYS
GIRLS

35 25

30
20
25

Number of students
20 15
Number of students

Serie1 Serie1
15
10
10

5 5

0
Once day More once day Once per tw o Once a w eek More once a More rare 0
days w eek Once day More once Once per Once a More once More rare
day tw o days w eek a w eek
 How often do you eat industrial desserts

BOYS
GIRLS

16
25
14

20
12

Number of students
Number of students

10
15
Serie1
Serie1 8

10 6

4
5
2

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once More rare
day two days week week day tw o days w eek a w eek
 How often do you have chewing gums?

GIRLS BOYS

18 16

16 14

14 12

12 Number of students
Number of students

10
10 Serie1
Serie1 8
8
6
6
4
4

2 2

0 0
Once day More once Once per Once a More once a More rare Once day More once Once per Once a More once More rare
day two days week week day tw o days w eek a w eek
 What do you prefer: home or industrial
desserts?

GIRLS BOYS

35 25

30
20

25 Number of students

15
Number of students

20
Serie1
Serie1
15 10

10
5

5
0
0 Home industrial
Home industrial
 Why do you choose sweets?

GIRLS BOYS

45 35

40
30
35
25
30

25 20
Serie1 Serie1
20 15
15
10
10
5
5

0 0
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