Artificial Food Coloring vs. Natural Food in the Confectionery Industry - Term Paper Example

Artificial Food Coloring vs. Natural Food in Confectionery Industry Introduction Color is perhaps the most critical ingredients in the manufacture of foods and drinks. This is perhaps the first thing that one notices in any food and it may encourage someone to take the food or bar them from doing so. Color also shapes the awareness of how fresh a particular food as is often said, people eat with the eyes first before they can even taste the food with their mouths. At times, however, the color of manufactured foods is not appealing. This is because the manufacturing process distorts the color, air, moisture, temperature, and storerooms can cause to color to weaken and lose vitality over time. For this reason, food manufacturers rely on the range of color components to add color or simply to spice what is already existent or to develop stability within a certain brand. If some colors are added to foods, they can help to safeguard vitamins and flavors from ruin. In addition to this, added colors create desire in certain foods such as sweets thus making them more appealing to children. Over the years, the issue of food color has generated much controversy especially when it comes to deciding whether to use natural or artificial food color (Downham and Collins 17). Color additives are gotten naturally while others are produced artificially. Over the years, there has been lots of controversy regarding the ideal color additive to use in confectionery. One controversy that has emerged in the last few years is that artificial color additives has a negative effect on the behavior of children especially those that have been found to be suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). While the research carried out within the last five decades has not proved this connection, scientists are quick to point out that the additives undergo extensive security and excellence development, but customers are not satisfied by this mere explanation. This has led them to shun foods that contain these food additives as much as they are able to do that. Still, other consumers tend to be drawn towards foods that that have been manufactured without any artificial additives and ones that are considered environmental friendly (Jeannine 137). Over the last few years, consumers have become more sensitized, something that has seen food manufacturers trying hard to change the way that they manufacture their products in order to come up with products that appeal to this category of consumers. Today, nearly 23% of all the manufactured food products have the word natural appearing on their labels. Although many companies are turning more towards natural food coloring, this has not been easy since there are numerous aspects that are associated with this trend. This term paper will try to examine the current debate between natural and artificial food additives in order to strike a balance between what is ideal for use in the manufacture of confectioneries and to establish whether this industry can disregard a certain type of additive and adopt another (Potera). Artificial versus Natural Additives The debate on the effect of some artificial food additives especially on the behavior of children began in 1975 after the release of the bestselling book Why Your Child is Hyperactive and mostly gave evidence on why certain food additives should be done away with. Written by Ben Feingold, a pediatric concentrating on allergies, the book dwells on various research findings about the effects of artificial food additives as well as other forms of synthetic additives and seeks to prove that certain types of food additives can bring about learning as well as hypersensitivity in children. Perhaps the most loved thing about the book is that it offers the world-renowned Feingold program, a certain diet that gives practical alternatives of avoiding all the additional additives in the manufacture of food (Stevenson 130) For close to two years before this book was published, Feingold and his fellow researchers spend considerable time researching on the effects of artificial food additives but curiosity on this debate rose sharply after the book was published in 1975. Despite the available research that has not established any kind of association between artificial food colorings and hypersensitivity, there has been great interest on Feingold findings as well as the diet that he unveiled. In 2007, another study that linked certain food additives to hypersensitivity led the Food and Standards Agency to impose a ban on six artificial colorings in all the food products that were sold within the United Kingdom before the end of 2009. FSA was also proposing that the ban be extended to all the EU countries but did not give any deadline towards the achievement of this objective. The food colorings that were placed in this category included sunset yellow, quinoline yellow, carmoisine, and allura red all of which are instrumental in confectionary (Downham and Collins 15). In another study that was conducted in the UK, it was established that children who took foods with certain types of artificial food additives became hypersensitive as compared to those who did not. Despite the results of the study establishing that certain artificial food additives led to hypersensitivity among children, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which is tasked with formulating scientific advice to back European guidelines pointed that this specific study was limited in that it did not specify the specific additive that caused the hypersensitivity. Actually, this certain study examined the effect of mixtures and did not consider any specific color additives. However, this fact did not bar some governmental agencies from placing restrictions or demanding that artificial colorings be banned (Downham and Collins 17). Following the release of the results of the above study, the European parliament has constantly been calling food manufacturers to place a label warning parents that the consumption of that specific food might have a negative effect of the health of their children. However, this has not been possible since the food manufacturers have succeeded in their claims that there is no tangible evidence which proves the adverse effects of the artificial food additives. However, due to the negative publicity, most food manufacturers have been trying to come up with alternatives to these food additives (Branen 165). The biggest challenge in trying to develop a food additive that is widely acceptable has been in finding an alternative that can withstand the rigorous processes of manufacturing. The good thing about artificial food colorings is that they are able to withstand high levels of heat and they are also capable of adapting to various environmental processes. Most manufacturers have found it hard to develop a product that can meet these standards since the acceptable standard in the past was to use artificial colorings but the change has presented a new challenge to manufacturers (Lucas, John and Steve 197). As the debate on the safety of artificial food additives continues to rage, most people have been going for the foods that are manufactured using natural food coloring. However, this is a big challenge for some manufacturers since the natural food additive is unable to play some of the roles that the artificial food additives play. An example of this is in the confectionary industry where the products have to have a long shelf life. In most cases, the natural food additives are only used in the manufacture of food products with a short shelf life and it is therefore, not ideal for use in the confectionary industry. In addition to this, most confectionary companies have a certain brand color that they use in their brands and the natural food additives do not allow them to achieve this objective. Due to this reason, candy manufacturers have been getting a lot of criticism from health conscious consumers who see them as unwilling to manufacture products that are health conscious (Branen 127). Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved more than nine artificial color additives for use, the problem is that it is not easy to use them in just any product. Even though changing the additive is still an option, the problem as noted earlier is that doing so would change the appearance of the product. In most cases, the natural colors do not have the brightness that most people are used to and using them in the manufacture of candies would significantly reduce their overall sales since they would not be appealing to most people anymore. According to experts, there is very low likelihood that a consumer will want to try out a product the moment it transforms its color into something unappealing (Branen 127). In the last few years, consumer preference has been changing and today most consumers have a preference for anything manufactured using natural ingredients. This has come due to the rising belief that natural is better and artificial is challenging. Despite this leaning towards natural products, the use of natural food colors poses numerous challenges for confectionaries and other industries. The studies carried in the last few years, which have pointed out that artificial food additives cause hypersensitivity in children are partly to blame for the sudden dislike of artificial food dyes. As noted out, the problem with majority of the studies has been that none of them was done using a single ingredient and as such, it is hard to determine the exact product that causes the hypersensitivity. The flurry created by particularly the Southampton University study has seen numerous companies both in the UK and in America trying to come up with ways to incorporate natural food color in their food products (Potera). For confectionary companies, the challenges of converting from the use of artificial to natural food dyes are enormous. Overall, it is estimated that the cost of switching from artificial to natural food coloring is bound to go up tenfold before it is fully implemented. While this cost is relatively small compared to what many of them make, the biggest challenge lies in the manner that the consumers will receive the transformed products in the market. This has led to a trend where manufacturers launch a new brand, which uses natural food dye instead of trying to change the already existent products. This company is evident in companies that claim that they only use food additives that are considered safe by the Food and Drug Administration. This is because all the ingredients have to function together so that they bring out a product that has a characteristic taste and appearance as the one that people are used to and producing anything lesser would not be accepted. Although this trend has not caught up with the confectionery industry, some food manufacturers in their endeavor to go natural have been using natural food coloring that are not appealing to consumers. An example of this is Starbucks who used lycopene, an extract from insects to make one of their drinks, which has since been withdrawn from the market (Šimko 17). If the natural and artificial food dyes were examined side by side, then it would appear that most manufacturers are shifting focus from foods manufactured using artificial additives to those manufactured using natural food color. However, the change is still not as swift as it would be expected considering that food manufacturers in the US alone spend over 15 million pounds of food additives each year and the figure keeps on increasing. Although there is very little credible research that links artificial food color to diseases, there are some unauthenticated reports, which indicate that certain food additives contain carcinogens that cause cancer. Though the FDA has approved nine artificial food dyes for use in the American market, some researchers still warn that these too might contain negative effects on human beings. An example of this is Red#40, which is a commonly used dye in candy’s and has been linked to brain tumors in both children and adults. However, the challenge with this piece of information is that there is no any other existing research to confirm such an observation. This fact alone means that most of the current scientific research in the discussion about the suitability of food color is scanty and cannot be relied to determine whether people should adopt artificial or natural food additives. However, as things currently stand out, most people have to adopt the use of natural food additives in order to meet the guidelines set by various regulating bodies. However, this is challenging considering that foods manufactured using natural food dyes do not last for long and this means that all the foods manufactured in this manner have to be consumed within a short market something that locks out certain markets of certain products. The fact that the food has to be preserved unlike in the case of natural food dyes means that manufacturing companies spend huge sums of money in storage alone (Brown 47). Importance of Food Colorings in the Candy Industry The current controversy surrounding food additives has seen some manufacturing companies shift their focus from artificial food dyes to natural food dyes. Still, some other companies have chosen to manufacture food products without the use of any sort of food color. However, some industries rely solely on food color in the manufacture of their products. An example of this is the candy industry. In reality, most foods look appealing even without the addition of any food color and as such, they can be marketed in their original form. However, this is impossible for most confectionary products since they require the demand the use of various ingredients for them to be able to appear enticing (Brown 47). In addition to this, most confectionary goods spoil quickly and they therefore need an additive that would preserve it for long. Unlike other foods that are consumed almost immediately, most confectionaries are consumed a long distance from their place of manufacture and as such there is need for an ingredient that would guarantee this longevity. Although there are numerous technological advancements that allow some products to stay for a long period, it is very challenging to use some of these technologies on candies and this call for the need to use certain preservation methods for such food products (Jeannine 135). The candy industry values food coloring to adjust and remove food discoloration especially during the time of processing and storage. The main products and ingredients that are valued within the candy industry include the carotenoids, red beet color, and brown caramels. In reality, the candy industry focuses on confections, beverages, ice creams, dairy products, and dessert powders and these need coloration to avoid spoiling. These products also benefit from colorings because it adds flavor, color, and enhances the texture as well as appearance of these foods. Many people who take candy are attracted by the color and smoothness that is brought about by the addictive. When the colorings are added, it makes it possible for the manufacturers to get a bigger market for the products. In reality, these food colors in candy enhance the product quality as well as demand, and the additives ensure that this goal is achieved (Cook 41). In addition, the candy industry uses food colors and additives because it ensures that the ingredients and mixtures blend together while also ensuring they do not separate. This keeps the candy consistent and appealing to the buyer because of the uniformity that is created. There are food colors that are preservatives in candy and they are used to eliminate spoilage by inhibiting the growth of bacteria. Antioxidants are also used in candy to ensure that fats and oils found in candy do not turn rancid which leads to unpleasant flavor. Other food colors that are important in the candy industry include the leavening agents which release acids into the products and this enhances texture as well as volume. There are also acidulants which are versatile acids that are used to include tartness and preserve acidity in the processing stage. In essence, these food colors are especially important in the candy industry because they assist in building flavor and preservation of the products. The food colors are crucial in ensuring that candy maintains an appealing appearance that attracts buyers. Conclusion Food colors are an important element for manufactures of beverages, sweets, ice cream, and dairy products among others. There are a wide range of food colors that manufactures use to achieve the desired texture and flavor of a product. There are natural and artificial food colors as well as additives but they all have to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. These two types of food colors play a different role in the food industry and manufactures have to choose the right product to use any of them. It is also paramount to note that the candy industry sees huge benefits in using food colors in the products. These benefits include adding color, texture, flavor, preservation, acidity levels, and appeal level among others. Works Cited Brown, Amy. Understanding food: Principles and preparation. Kentucky: Cengage Learning, 2010. Print. Branen, Larry, et al., eds. Food additives. New York: CRC Press, 2001. Print. Cook, Jim. "Colorants Compliance". The World of Food Ingredients (Arnhem, The Netherlands: CNS Media BV) (Sept 2013): 41–43. Downham, Alison and Collins, Paul. "Colouring our foods in the last and next millennium." International Journal of Food Science and Technology (Blackwell Science Ltd) (2002): 35: 5–22. Jeannine, Delwiche. "The impact of perceptual interactions on perceived flavor". Food Quality and Preference 14 (2): (2003): 137–146. Lucas, Christine D., John B. Hallagan, and Steve L. Taylor. "The role of natural color additives in food allergy." Advances in food and nutrition research 43 (2000): 195-216. Potera, Carol. "Diet and nutrition: the artificial food dye blues." Environmental health perspectives 118.10 (2010): A428. Stevenson, Jim. "Recent research on food additives: implications for CAMH." Child and Adolescent Mental Health 15.3 (2010): 130-133. Šimko, Peter. "Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in smoked meat products and smoke flavouring food additives." Journal of Chromatography B 770.1 (2002): 3-18. Read More