Tokyo Food Safety Information Center » Good things to know » Food additives » Overview
Overview
What is your image of food additives?
Since ancient times, people have added salt, smoke from the hearth, and the leaves and products of plants to food with the purpose of making food last longer, taste better, and change the color or fragrance of food. These attempts were the start of the use of food additives.
In recent times, advances in food production technology have resulted in the widespread of a diverse range of processed foods, making our food choices even more abundant than ever before. And in most cases, food additives are used in the production of these processed foods.
In Japan today, only food additives which have been proven safe and which have been designated by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may be used in the production of food. However, with the increase in the importation of food and the differing laws and standards of the various countries these foods come from, food additives which are not approved for use in Japan have been detected in imported foods.
Are we eating the foods made using food additives which are an unavoidable part of everyday life with a proper understanding of why those additives are being used and what rules there are concerning them?
And are businesses using the bare minimum amount of food additives based on an accurate understanding of their usage methods, effects, and labeling requirements?
This website was created in order to provide readers with proper understanding of what food additives are, how their safety is proven so they may be used commercially, and how foods which are made using food additives are labeled. We hope that this website will help you gain an accurate understanding of food additives.