The Ingredients of Flavor and Fragrance in Our Life

Flavors and spices in food additives mainly include natural flavors, synthetic flavors and spices.

The use of flavors and spices in the food industry is very common, they can add aroma to food, improve the taste, but also an important means of food flavor. The following are some specific types of flavor and fragrance food additives:

Natural flavors: These are substances derived from natural plant or animal raw materials and are generally considered to be safer. For example, safrole is extracted from the leaves of sassafras and eucalyptus.

Synthetic fragrances: These are fragrances obtained through chemical synthesis methods, including natural equivalents and artificial fragrances. Natural equivalents are obtained by chemical synthesis or isolation from natural raw materials and are chemically identical to substances present in natural products. Artificial flavors are those that are not found in nature.

Spices: These mainly refer to plant spices, such as Sichuan pepper, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, etc., they can not only increase the aroma of food, but also have a certain spicy flavor.

Flavor: This is a substance made from a mixture of spices, used to mimic the aroma of natural foods. The use of food flavors can restore the aroma lost during processing, and a variety of different scents can be created as needed.

Essential oil: This is an oily substance containing volatile components extracted from plants by distillation, pressing and other methods, and is often used in food flavor4.

Extractum: This is a concentrated substance containing essential oils and other plant ingredients, usually in a paste or solid statement.

Tincture: This is the product obtained after the extraction of aromatic plants with ethanol or other solvents, and contains the active ingredient of spices.

Net oil: This is a highly concentrated spice substance extracted from plants by a special process.

Oleoresin: This is a substance extracted from the essential oil and resin of the fragrant plant, which is often used in food flavoring.

It should be noted that although flavors and fragrances can enhance the flavor of food, their use must comply with relevant food safety standards and regulations to ensure the health and safety of consumers.