About Chemical Analysis of Foods

Food and foodstuffs have gained a lot of attention lately, thanks to the introduction of genetically modified food stuffs. This has led to many surveys, research and work done on food as a whole. It is quite easy to obtain knowledge on the nutritional aspects of any food stuff today. With the widespread and rampant usage of chemicals to make and store food longer, food products have become one of the most tested items in chemical laboratories.

Checking and Testing of Foodstuffs

• The shortage in food supply in many parts of the world, coupled with the profit-minded food production corporations, has made adulteration a major issue. The only means of keeping a check on this problem is to mandate the chemical analysis of every food product. Food has to be regularly checked for pathogenic organisms and contamination levels so as to safeguard the health of consumers.

Where Can Food be Tested?

• Chemical analysis of food is confined to the realms of a laboratory. For the effective check of adulteration, manufacturers should be provided simple hand-held tools that can measure impurity levels. The analysis of food to detect small amounts of hazardous foreign substances still requires intricate machinery, which is only found in laboratories. Animal and poultry products are not only analyzed for their nutritional values, but also to ensure that levels of antibiotics and drugs in the meat are below the acceptable levels.

Role of Food Manufacturers

• Food agencies and other enforcement agencies around the world require each and every food manufacturer to print data regarding the composition of their products, which include everything from nutritional values and impurity content to the levels of added preservatives and colors. Only after the manufacturer has done this test and has received the approval of a government-sanctioned laboratory can he launch a new product into the market.

Setting Standards

• Chemical analysis of food is also important in terms of laying down guidelines for the manufacturing process by identifying at which points during the process there is a hazard of contamination in the food product. Therefore, through chemical analysis, proper manufacturing practices can be implemented before foodstuffs become contaminated. The standards set during the testing and implementation process should be used for all foodstuff manufacturers by having it approved in parliament as a law.

Benefit to Consumers

• As a customer, a chemical analysis of foodstuffs allows us to choose what to eat and what not to eat. For example, a person on a weight reduction diet will choose not to buy high trans-fat and unsaturated fat products and opt to take high protein products only. Also by reading the composition of food content one can easily deduce whether or not it is viable for infant consumption. Without the analysis of foodstuffs, sticking to a proper diet and staying healthy is impossible.